“Oh Hamas…All of Jordan’s people are behind you.” These were the cries of 2,000 protesters in the Jordanian capital Amman. Marching towards the Israeli embassy, the protesters were beaten back by baton-wielding Jordanian police from the Rabae district where the Israeli embassy is located. This has been the third day of clashes between the police and the protesters.
Many Jordanians are of Palestinian origin and the ongoing war with Hamas has raised tensions within the country. The protests have only grown with the ongoing bombing campaign on Gaza by Israel. Authorities in the country have said peaceful protests are allowed but they will not allow mob anger. There has been a mass crackdown in the country.
Amnesty International called the crackdown “draconian” in its report which stated that “at least 1,000 people – protesters and bystanders – were arrested during protests in support of Gaza in the Jordanian capital Amman within a one-month period between October and November 2023. At least five others were arrested between November and December 2023 and charged under the August 2023 Cybercrimes Law for social media posts expressing pro-Palestinian sentiments, criticizing the authorities’ peace or economic deals with Israel or calling for public strikes and protests.” It asked the Jordanian authorities to release those who were “arbitrarily detained.”
Jordanians are also angry with any normalisation of ties with Israel and the signing of a peace treaty between Jordan and Israel normalising relations in 1994 has not gone down well with the people. The treaty made Jordan the second Arab state to normalise relations with Israel after Egypt.
Consumers in Jordan and other Arab nations are boycotting US and European products in stores in support of the Palestinians. This has affected brands like McDonalds and Starbucks in the Middle East.
