Jordan's king agrees to take in Gazans

It looks like Donald Trump's efforts to get a country like Jordan to take in Gazans is beginning to bear fruit:

King Abdullah II of Jordan visited President Donald Trump at the White House on Tuesday, where the Jordanian king agreed to accept refugees into his country.

The meeting comes after Trump made repeated demands for Jordan and Egypt to take in refugees, despite both countries declining. Trump and Abdullah met to discuss issues including Trump’s Gaza proposal, the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, ISIS and al-Qaeda, and economic cooperation.

The king and crown prince of Jordan arrived at the White House around noon Tuesday afternoon, where they both attended a bilateral meeting and lunch with the president. Secretary of State Marco Rubio also attended the meeting — the first official encounter between the King of Jordan and the President of the United States since Hamas and Israel agreed to a ceasefire. [...]

King Abdullah said he is open to coming up with solutions that serve the interests of all parties.

“I think the point is how do we make this work in a way that is good for everybody. Obviously, we have to look at the best interests of the United States, of the people in the region, and especially my people of Jordan.”

Abdullah offered to take 2,000 sick children from the Gaza Strip almost immediately.

Trump called the gesture “beautiful.”

“We really appreciate it,” Trump said. “It’s music to my ears.”

King Abdullah said he wants to wait for the Egyptians to present their plan on how to address the challenges in Gaza.

Trump said he believes there is a 99% chance he will work something out with Egypt. The president previously threatened to withhold aid to the two countries unless a deal could be made, but backed down during the meeting, stating “I do think we’re above that.”

So far, Egypt's premier, Al-Sisi, has been balking at cooperating. But hopefully, that too will be worked out, and Egypt should by all means start accepting Muslims in Gaza into their country. And if aid needs to be withheld to make clear what they should do, then perhaps that's the best thing to do.

Jordan condones Islamic violence on Temple Mount

It's hardly a shock they'd do it, though:

Amid escalating diplomatic tensions with Jordan over recent clashes on Jerusalem’s Temple Mount, Prime Minister Naftali Bennett said on Monday that he views “with utmost severity” comments blaming Israel for the violence.

Bennett spoke after Israel’s Foreign Ministry directly accused Jordan of “backing those who… resort to violence.”

Alluding to comments made earlier in the day by Jordan’s prime minister, Bennett lashed out at “the remarks accusing Israel of the violence directed against us,” and fumed that “there are those who are encouraging rock-throwing and the use of violence against the citizens of the State of Israel.

This is unacceptable to us,” he said. “This is a reward for the inciters, especially Hamas, which are trying to ignite violence in Jerusalem. We will not allow this to happen.”

This is one thing, in itself, where Bennett's right upon, even though again, he has blame of his own to shoulder in how he's handled things. With that told, here's where the Jordanian government reared their ugly head, demonstrating their true image influenced by Islam:

Earlier Monday, Jordanian Prime Minister Bisher Khasawneh hailed Palestinian rioters and used unusually hostile language to condemn “Zionist sympathizers” and what he called Israel’s “occupation government.”

“I salute every Palestinian, and all the employees of the Jordanian Islamic Waqf, who proudly stand like minarets, hurling their stones in a volley of clay at the Zionist sympathizers defiling the Al-Aqsa Mosque under the protection of the Israeli occupation government,” Khasawneh told a session of the Jordanian parliament.

Justice Minister Gideon Sa’ar directly responded to the Jordanian prime minister’s remarks, tweeting that “statements made by senior officials in the Kingdom of Jordan are grave and unacceptable.”

“The sovereignty of Israel in Jerusalem as its capital is the guarantee of freedom of worship for members of all religions in the city. The attempts of extremist and terrorist elements, such as Hamas, to ignite the territory through a false anti-Israel campaign are transparent and should be condemned,” he added.

And while Saar's response is valid, in itself, let's not forget he too has blame to shoulder, mainly because he went into this government as part of a boycott of Netanyahu, not out of altruistic motives.

This editorial makes a point what the real motivations were by the jihadists:

The Muslims who stockpiled stones, rocks, logs and firecrackers in al-Aqsa did not do so for religious purposes. They prepared for a riot – to attack police and Jewish worshipers – not for prayers. Police did not storm al-Aqsa Mosque to “conquer” it. They broke in to arrest the rock throwers who had barricaded themselves inside after Friday prayers. Some of the masked Palestinians waved Hamas flags and praised arch-terrorist Muhammed Deif as they tried to bombard the Jewish worshipers who had come to pray at the Western Wall at the start of the Passover holiday.

[...] It is Jewish worship that is limited at Judaism’s holiest site. The Muslim extremists object to any Jewish presence on Temple Mount and now refer to the entire area as “al-Aqsa” and yesterday they threw rocks at buses traveling to the Western Wall. Jews who ascend Temple Mount note, however, that part of the area serves as a soccer field, far from serving religious needs.

Hamas, Islamic Jihad and the Palestinian Authority have all accused Israel of carrying out “provocations” and an “assault” at the site. They are hoping to turn it into a battle cry. It is easy to rally Muslims everywhere around the lie that al-Aqsa is in danger and needs defending. The terrorist organizations are hoping that this becomes as self-fulfilling prophesy.

And Jordan's only adding fuel to the fire by backing this up, which demonstrates what an enemy country they actually are. It suggests that one day, relations with them will fall apart altogether, so long as they adhere to the Religion of Peace.

Arab King, American President Talk of 57 States (Corrected)

Though speaking almost one year apart, King Abdullah II of Jordan and President Barack Obama seem to have a penchant for the concept of 57 states. In a TimesOnline article this morning about prospects of Middle East peace, Jordan's King Abdullah was quoted by writer Richard Beeston as saying, “This is not a two-state solution, it is a 57-state solution” — a reference to the number of nations of the United Nations that do not recognize Israel. It comes almost one year after then-candidate Obama referred to having visited 57 states during his presidential campaign.

Knowing this country has only 50 states, I conducted research soon after Obama made his statement and discovered logical explanations for his seven mystery states. Click here to read about them.

JORDAN BARS JUDAIST ITEMS FROM BEING BROUGHT IN

Discrimination against Jews carrying items related to their founding faith has turned up in Jordan. From the Jerusalem Post (via The American Thinker):

Jordanian border officials refused to allow a group of Israeli tourists carrying religious objects such as talitot and tefillin to enter their country on Tuesday, saying it was "a safety measure" to avoid potential terror threats.

Thirty-six Israeli tourists on their way to Amman for a three-day tour were detained at the Sheikh Ali Hussein Crossing near Beit She'an at 6:30 a.m. and notified of a new regulation that prohibits entry into Jordan with tefillin, talitot, prayer books, Bibles or the Talmud.

"Our group was presented with two options," said Alan Novetsky, a recent immigrant from New York who was accompanied on the tour by his wife. "Either enter Jordan without religious objects or go back to Israel."

Novetsky said the group's suitcases were thoroughly searched for religious items. "They seemed to know exactly what they were looking for.

"It was very demeaning to have such a negative experience in what is billed as a friendly country. People in the group, including the tour guides, were quite shocked. No one had ever heard that Jordan imposed religious restrictions," he said.

"What made it worse was that the whole thing seemed to be directed solely at Jews. I saw Christians walking through into Jordan openly wearing crosses. Apparently, Christian religious symbols did not seem to be a problem for the Jordanians. I can well imagine the international outcry if Islamic tourists were to encounter such restrictions on their entry into Israel."

A Jordanian security official said the decision was taken only for "security reasons."

The official said that the decision had been in effect for a long time and Israeli authorities were aware of it.

"The Jordanian security authorities are responsible for the safety of all visitors to the kingdom and it is our duty to take all measures required in this regard," the official explained. He expressed regret that the tourists had been offended by the measure.

Novetsky said that at first the the guides tried to bargain with the Jordanian officials, promising to keep the religious items hidden and to pray inside the hotel. But the suggestions were rejected.

"The vast majority of the group decided that as proud Israelis, we were either going to be allowed to walk into Jordan holding our religious objects or we would not go in at all."

This should serve as a telling sign that one day, relations with Jordan are going to deteriorate. And I wouldn't be surprised if sooner or later, Jordan will bar even Christians from bringing religious items into the Islam-dominated country too.

PROOF THE ARABS FEAR IRAN MORE THAN ISRAEL

Israel has had nukes for decades, but now that Iran is about the achieve nuclear capability, Arab nations are scrambling to also build them (Spiegel Magazine Interview with Jordanian King Abdullah):

Jordanian King Abdullah II, 45, discusses this week's election in his desert state, war and peace in the Middle East and Amman's desire to establish a civilian atomic energy program.

SPIEGEL: Jordan and Egypt are the only Arab states to have concluded a peace treaty with Israel. Has this treaty paid off for you economically?

Abdullah: Peace with Israel is a strategic imperative for Jordan. As far as the direct impact on the Jordanian economy, our initial expecations have not been fulfilled. However, I am nevertheless convinced that our trade relations will profit once there is true peace in the region.

SPIEGEL: For some time now, many Arab countries have been talking about their desire to start a nuclear program. Why has that happened all of a sudden?

Abdullah: Take a look at the price of oil. This is not anything new. Countries such as Jordan have been talking to the West about the use of nuclear energy for two, three years. The price of oil is a major economic hurdle in Jordan, so I think we need to move quickly. Of course, all of this must be transparent and in agreement with the relevant international organizations. I hope that none of the countries in the Middle East are planning anything but the peaceful utilization of nuclear energy.

SPIEGEL: Iran, too?

Abdullah: Not the Arab countries, in any case. Iran, I believe, does have aspirations to develop nuclear weapons. The Iranians themselves are saying that. But we have to avoid any ambiguity. After all, Jordan already has one neighbor with nuclear capabilities.

SPIEGEL: Israel, which has not officially admitted that it has nuclear weapons.

Abdullah: I think we need to have transparency from all the countries in the region. For the safety of all of us.

SPIEGEL: Do you have a concrete schedule for your nuclear program?

Abdullah: We're fortunate to be sitting on 3 percent of the world's uranium reserves, and we have very high quality uranium here in Jordan. That makes nuclear energy all the more interesting for us. So, yes, we do have a nuclear program, and we'll probably do it through the private sector.

SPIEGEL: Even years ago, you warned about the strengthening Shiite nations and the emergence of a "Shiite Crescent." Has history proven you to be correct?

Abdullah: Our major concern was that one country was using Shiite Islam, in other words, religion, as a political tool. Today we have countries that we regard either as moderate or extreme. The moderate countries are Egypt, Jordan, Saudi Arabia and most of the Gulf states. On the other side you have Iran, Syria and, to a certain extent, Hamas in Gaza und Hezbollah in Lebanon. I hope that the peace process and the dividends it brings will help us to relieve such tensions.

Sounds like the King is pretty worried about Iran. It's interesting how he segued right from discussing his potential nuclear capability right into a discussion of the Iranian threat.

Hmm. You don't suppose he plans on turning any of that "high-quality uranium" into a nuclear weapon, do you?

US BOLSTERING OF SUNNI REGIMES NOW GETTING STUPID - NUKE TECH TO JORDAN EDITION

The country is historically unstable, subject to invasion by its more militant Arab neighbors, and 70 percent Palestinian. What could possibly go wrong:

The United States has signed an accord with Jordan aimed at supporting the peaceful development of the kingdom's nascent nuclear program, the U.S. Embassy said Sunday. The agreement comes at a time of heightened tensions over Iran's controversial nuclear program, which the U.S. suspects is a cover for weapons development - a charge Tehran denies. Jordan and several other Sunni Arab countries have recently announced plans to develop peaceful nuclear programs. U.S. Secretary of Energy Samuel Bodman and Jordanian Minister for Scientific Research Khaled Toukan signed Sunday's memorandum of understanding on the sidelines of a nuclear energy summit in Vienna.

No worries though - it's not like sub-weapons grade uranium can be packed into a dirty bomb. Or a suicide belt. And it's not like large swaths of their population are pathologically anti-Semitic.

[Cross-posted to Mere Rhetoric]