Khalil Mazraawi AFP/Getty Images
TEL AVIV — Prince Hamzeh bin Hussein, the former crown prince at the center of an alleged coup attempt that has for three days roiled the Jordanian kingdom, said that he intends to disobey military orders to cease communicating with the public, including on Twitter, according to a voice recording released on Monday.
It was made public a day after an Israeli businessman and close personal friend to Hamzeh, Roy Shaposhnik, said that he had offered the prince’s wife and children the use of a private jet to escape Jordan, suggesting that the royals accused by the government of “promoting sedition” may have been planning to leave the country.
“I don’t want to move because I don't want to escalate [the situation] yet, but of course I'm not going to adhere when they tell me you can’t go out and you can’t tweet and you can’t communicate with people and you’re only allowed to see family,” said Hamzeh in the recording. “When the head of the [army] comes and tells you this stuff, it’s a bit … I think it’s unacceptable, in any form. So now we're waiting for salvation, and we’ll see.”
The recording, which seemed to start and end abruptly, as if potentially cut off from a larger audio file, was shared by opposition groups on Facebook early Monday morning. They did not specify when it had been recorded.
Hamzeh, the estranged 41-year-old half brother of Jordan’s King Abdullah II, has been under house arrest since Saturday, at the same time that the military detained up to 17 additional high-level officials whom it accused of taking part in an internationally-backed plot to harm the security of the kingdom.
They were “individuals who hoped to undermine Jordan’s role in the region, and [who engaged in] activities whose goal were to strike Jordan, its stability, and promote sedition,” said Deputy Prime Minister Ayman al-Safadi in a televised statement on Sunday.
Among those arrested were Sharif Hasan, a member of the royal family; Bassem Awadullah, a former senior official in the royal court and special Jordanian representative to the Saudi government; Yasser Majali, the head of Hamzeh’s office; Sheikh Sameer Majali; and several others who served in prominent positions in the government and military.
Safadi said that as many as 18 officials who had been detained had been under extensive surveillance and were known to have ties to foreign entities. He said that the prince had been contacted by a foreign source who had offered him a number of services, including the use of a private plane for his wife and children to flee Jordan.
On Sunday night, “Ammon,” a news site with ties to the Jordanian intelligence community, reported that Shaposhnik, whom it identified as former Mossad, had offered the plane.
Several hours later, Shaposhnik, in a statement posted on Facebook, denied having worked for the Mossad but said that, instead, he was a close friend of Hamzeh.
“Mr. Shaposhnik, 41, is an Israeli citizen who resides in Europe. Despite salacious reporting to the contrary, he has never served in any capacity with any intelligence branch in Israel or any other country for that matter. He has, however, maintained a friendship with Prince Hamzah Bin Hussein of Jordan,” said the statement. “This weekend Prince Hamzah contacted Mr. Shaposhnik to describe the dynamic situation in Amman and to express concerns about the safety of his family. In response, Mr. Shaposhnik extended an invitation for the prince’s wife and children to stay at his home in Europe.”
[What to know about Jordan, the U.S. ally that faced an alleged coup attempt]
The United States, in addition to Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Egypt, and a slew of other regional allies, quickly voiced support for the monarch on Saturday.
The only Israeli response came from Defense Minister Benny Gantz, who called the situation an “internal” issue.
Mike Nelson
EPA-EFE/REX/Shutterstock
Former Jordanian crown prince Hamzeh bin Al Hussein (L) with his half brother King Abullah II of Jordan (R) as they walk together in the funeral procession of Palestinian President Yasser Arafat in Cairo, 12 Nov. 12, 2004.
The dramatic developments have made public the traditionally private rifts within in the Jordanian royal palace between Abdullah and his popular half brother.
Hamzeh and Abdullah are both the sons of Jordan’s late, revered King Hussein, though they have different mothers. Tensions between them have reportedly been brewing since 2004, when Hamzeh was replaced by Abdullah’s eldest son, Hussein, as crown prince.
Under house arrest late Saturday night, Hamzeh sent a video to the BBC accusing the government of corruption, incompetence and intolerance for dissent. He did not mention the king.
“It has reached a point where no one is able to speak or express opinion on anything without being bullied, arrested, harassed and threatened,” Hamzeh says in the video.
Jordan is under a strict nightly coronavirus-related curfew that is set to last until mid-May. It has been hit hard economically by the pandemic and by the massive waves of refugees who have arrived from neighboring Syria.
The country’s health minister resigned last month after seven people died of covid-19 amid a shortage of oxygen supplies at government hospitals.
The following day, protesters defied the nighttime curfew and took to the streets, calling for the government to resign, and chanting for Hamzeh to save the country.
Dadouch reported from Beirut.
Nearly 20 arrested in alleged plot against Jordan’s King Abdullah II
After 25 years, Jordan declines to renew Israel’s access to the ‘Island of Peace’
World - Latest - Google News
April 05, 2021 at 05:15PM
https://ift.tt/3dyl1Oe
Jordan’s Prince Hamzeh says he won’t obey orders to stay silent, but doesn’t seek ‘escalation’ - The Washington Post
World - Latest - Google News
https://ift.tt/2SeTG7d
Bagikan Berita Ini
0 Response to "Jordan’s Prince Hamzeh says he won’t obey orders to stay silent, but doesn’t seek ‘escalation’ - The Washington Post"
Post a Comment