Jordan to revoke sections of 1994 peace treaty with Israel

JERUSALEM — Jordan’s King Abdullah II announced Sunday that he does not plan to renew parts of the country’s 24year-old peace agreement with Israel, amid public pressure to rebuke the Israeli government following the U.S. Embassy’s move to Jerusalem and ongoing violence in Gaza.

In Israel, the announcement was received with surprise. Analysts said it was a populist move by the king aimed at opposition groups. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu appeared unruffled. He said relations with Jordan were still strong.

The deal was signed in November 1994 by Abdullah’s father, King Hussein, and then-Israeli Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin.

The parts Jordan wants to revoke relate to two parcels of land Jordan leased to Israel for 25 years. Known as Baqoura and Ghumar in Arabic and Naharayim and Zofar in Hebrew, the lease on the two territories — one to the north and another farther south — ends in one year. Jordan had until Thursday to make clear to Israel it would not renew the arrangement.

“Baqoura and Ghumar are Jordanian lands and will remain Jordanian and we will exercise full sovereignty over our territory,” the king said.

The peace treaty with Israel is deeply unpopular in Jordan, where people claim that successive Israeli governments have failed to live up to water-sharing agreements. Israel’s ongoing occupation of Palestinian territories is also a source of anger among Jordanians.

Netanyahu played down the king’s announcement, saying he would try to negotiate an extension.