Anwar Gargash denounces the exploitation of the Gaza war to incite instability in Jordan

“Jordan has always been a rational and influential voice in support of the Palestinians and exploiting Israeli aggression against Gaza to incite the people and instigate instability in the Kingdom is totally unacceptable and does not serve the people of Gaza. The conflicts waged by certain organizations against the Arab State do not represent the legitimate rights of the Palestinian people nor defend their rights,” Dr. Anwar Gargash said in a statement on X.

Activists in Jordan called for more protests on Sunday after days of demonstrations against the war and Jordan’s peace treaty with Israel that have brought thousands of people to the streets.

Jordan, where almost half the population is of Palestinian origin, has seen regular demonstrations in Amman and elsewhere in solidarity with Gaza since Israel’s military strike in response to the unprecedented Hamas attack on October 7.

Recent protests have seen rare clashes between protesters and security forces in the capital and Jordan’s largest Palestinian refugee camp.

The Jordanian Youth Gathering group urged people to return later Sunday to the Israeli embassy in Amman “to support the resistance in Gaza and demand the cancellation of the Jordanian-Israeli peace treaty and cut all ties with Israel.”

In 1994, Jordan became the second Arab country, after Egypt in 1979, to sign a peace treaty with Israel.

“No to a Zionist embassy on Jordanian territory,” read a banner at Saturday’s protest at the embassy, ​​where people have gathered every night since the Muslim holy month of Ramadan began more than two weeks ago.

Security forces said Sunday they had arrested several protesters 20 kilometers (12 miles) north of Amman in the Beqaa refugee camp.

Public security spokesman Amer Al Sartaawi said in a statement that “a number of rioters” were arrested after “acts of rioting and vandalism, arson and throwing stones at vehicles on public roads.”

The Beqaa camp, home to more than 100,000 Palestinians, is one of six camps created to house the influx of refugees who fled the West Bank and Gaza Strip during the 1967 Arab-Israeli war.

Jordan has 2.2 million people registered with UNRWA, the UN agency for Palestinian refugees.

Many have been granted Jordanian citizenship.

Hamas’ attack on Israel in October killed 1,160 people, mostly civilians, according to an AFP tally of official Israeli figures.

Israel responded with a relentless military campaign that has so far killed 32,782 people, mostly women and children, according to the Health Ministry in Hamas-ruled Gaza.