Free Republic

When Jordan's Arab Legion seized half of Jerusalem, ethnically cleansed its Jewish population and annexed the city-- the only entity to recognize the annexation was the United Kingdom which had provided the officers and the training that made the conquest possible. Officers like Colonel Bill Newman, Major Geoffrey Lockett and Major Bob Slade, under Glubb Pasha, better known as General John Bagot Glubb, whose son later converted to Islam, invaded Jerusalem and used the Muslim forces under their command to make the partition and ethnic cleansing of Jerusalem possible. The Jews living in the free half of Jerusalem continued to...

Jordan's decision should be a no-brainer The Palestine Liberation Organisation (PLO)—refusing to bow to pressure by President Trump to cease payments to terrorists and their families currently exceeding US$400 million annually—is looming as a potential threat to end 96 years of unbroken Hashemite rule in Jordan. PLO Chairman Mahmoud Abbas - addressing the ninth annual Islamic Beit al-Maqdes International Conference in Ramallah last week—has sent a veiled message of the PLO’s intention to challenge Jordan’s ruling Hashemite family if PLO demands for a State in the West Bank with Jerusalem as its capital are not met.

On a dusty hill in the suburbs of Amman, the capital of Jordan, I visited the late King Hussein's magnificent automobile collection, opened to the public as a museum. Amid rows of gleaming motorcycles, I passed a brightly-coloured Japanese racer and a low-riding American chopper, and my eyes fell on one dark model that stood behind them. This, a placard told me, was a Brough Superior, British-made and once common in Jordan as a motorcycle used for military purposes. Jordan is an island of peace and stability in a sea of turmoil. There is almost nowhere in the region that...

AMMAN, Jordan — The deputy head of the Muslim Brotherhood in Jordan was sentenced on Sunday to 18 months in prison for criticizing the United Arab Emirates in a Facebook post. The state security court, a special body that has jurisdiction over Jordan’s internal and external threats, found the Brotherhood leader, Zaki Bani Rushaid, guilty of “acts harmful to the country’s relations with a friendly nation.” On his personal Facebook page, Mr. Bani Rushaid wrote on Nov. 17 that the Emirates, an important ally of Jordan and one of several countries in the region, including Egypt and Saudi Arabia, that...

The Pope has once again shown his willingness to break with tradition by bowing to Muslim royal Queen Rania of Jordan. As leader of the world's 1.2billion-strong Catholic community, protocol usually dictates that visitors bow to him when they meet him at the Vatican. But when Rania came to the Holy See with her husband King Abdullah II on Thursday, he inverted that formality by lowering his head to her. He made no discernible bow toward her husband, the king. The Jordanian royals were leaving following a private audience with the pope in his library. 'Francis behaves as he did...

AMMAN, Jordan (AP) -- Prince Hassan's hope to visit Iraq soon is sparking fresh speculation the one-time heir to the Jordanian throne -- unceremoniously dumped by his dying brother after three decades of grooming -- is a prince in search of a kingdom. An aide to the prince denied the talk Monday, but such concerns have in the past forced Hassan's nephew, King Abdullah II, to insist Jordan's royal family has no designs on ruling neighboring Iraq. Last week, Hassan told Al-Arabiya satellite channel that he plans a visit to Baghdad "soon" to try to mediate political disputes among...

Excerpt: AMMAN -- This week marks the end of the holy month of Ramadan, when Muslims throughout the world take time to reflect upon the values of our faith: compassion, goodwill and respect for others. These are core ideals in Islam, the faith that my family, the Hashemites, descendants of the Prophet Muhammad, peace be upon Him, has served for 40 generations. Our religion calls us to live and work for justice and to promote tolerance. Daily, we share God's blessing: Salaam Aleikum -- "Peace be upon you."

Washington is searching for a successor regime to Saddam Hussein. It is an exercise in political science. Can an even passably democratic government be devised to take the place of a dictator who has stripped his people of decency and trust in others? Iraqis of all sorts are putting themselves forward: dissidents and exiles, former army officers who fled from Saddam in fear of their lives, men of substance certainly. But how representative are they? Why should Iraqis have confidence in self-selected and evidently ambitious leaders whose legitimacy is questionable? This is where the Hashemite family comes in. The...