100 years on, Jordanian throne stands strong

IT did not come as a surprise when the Jordanian leadership quickly resolved a complex coup attempt, which was long planned and was being carried out quietly.

This is not new to the Jordanian throne. The latter has managed to turn many trials in its favor and as a source of its strength. Since April 11, 1921 when Jordan was declared a monarchy, it has gone through many twists and turns. That is why what happened in the past two days will neither change its reality nor diminish the resolution of its leadership and people in facing all the dangers surrounding it.

The most difficult test in Jordan’s history was the assassination of King Abdullah bin Al-Hussein on July 20, 1951. This happened at a time when the wounds of the first Arab-Israeli war in 1948 were still bleeding politically and demographically. It had cast a shadow over the internal situation, which King Hussein Bin Talal had to tackle with a lot of patience.

The young king worked on carefully reconciling the internal stability and the regional flames of instability. Within a few years, he was able to strengthen the government institutions and create great national immunity, the benefits of which appeared in the 1960s when the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) took Jordan as a shelter and a launch pad for its military operations.

This resulted in Israel being dragged into a military confrontation that was quickly settled by the Jordanian army in its favor in the Battle of Karameh (Dignity) in 1968. Not a year had passed since the the “June setback” or the Six-Day War, after which the skirmishes of the Palestinian guerrillas and the Jordanian army broke out in 1968 and 1971, which ended in the “Black September” battles, and the exit of the PLO from Jordan.

His success in dealing with all these events especially with the leadership of his country being in a regional minefield made King Hussein a central figure both regionally and internationally, and a leader who made his mark with these events.

However, the developments that the region witnessed over the past decades were casting a shadow over a country with limited capabilities like Jordan, especially with the economic crisis in the past two decades.

This crisis could have turned into a volcano had the Jordanian leadership not worked smartly and quickly to address some of the causes of the crisis, and benefit from the experience that King Abdullah II inherited from his father.

It goes without saying that in any crisis there are trolls in troubled waters, either from a barista in a tent erected on the hills of the Jordan who blabbers about what he does not know, or those with long beards and shortened their robes and have taken religion as a cover for them, and seek to tamper with Jordan’s security.

There is no doubt that there are several loopholes left by the economic crisis in the fence of social and political protection. The Jordanian leadership has to work on filling them through regional and international economic partnerships that give it the ability to modernize its industrial and agricultural infrastructure and open up world markets to it.

In 1994 after the signing of the peace agreement with Israel, Amman had a great opportunity as this agreement could have been a gateway to ensuring a peace partnership, its regional expansion, and dedication towards addressing structural problems in the local economy.

However, in accordance with the principle of “It is better late than never”, it is not too late. The chance is still available for quick work, which should come from the top of the leadership hierarchy. King Abdullah II is well cultured and able to dialogue. Jordan’s great international relations can be employed in managing the economic file, which cuts off the road for anyone who has evil plans in Jordan. The stability of this country represents the gateway to the region’s stability.