Jordan - Al-Monitor: The Middle Eastʼs leading independent news source since 2012

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Jordan

August 17, 2024

Amman 4:19 am

25°C

Imane Khelif

Middle East athletes rack up 44 medals at Paris Olympics

Ten Middle Eastern countries won medals at this year's Paris games.

US President Joe Biden meets with members of the National Security team regarding the unfolding missile attacks on Israel from Iran, on April 13, 2024.

Biden and Jordanian king speak as US scrambles to avert regional war

The call between the two leaders came as the Middle East braces for Iran's expected retaliation against Israel following last week's back-to-back assassinations.

US Central Command Cmdr. Gen. Michael Kurilla speaks at the 18th IISS Manama Dialogue, Manama, Bahrain, Nov. 19, 2022.

CENTCOM chief heads for Israel as country prepares for Iran attack

US Central Command Commander Michael Kurilla has arrived in the Middle East in efforts to coordinate with Israel and other countries against an expected attack by Iran.

The aircraft of US Secretary of State Antony Blinken disembarks his aircraft as he arrives at Ben Gurion airport near Tel Aviv, on June 10, 2024.

Blinken returns to Middle East in high-stakes push for Gaza cease-fire

Secretary of State Antony Blinken arrived in the region to push for a cease-fire as the UN Security Council was set to vote on a US-drafted resolution supporting the deal.

Latest News

Blinken to return to Middle East in diplomatic blitz to end Gaza war

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken (L) addresses the media prior to a meeting of NATO foreign ministers at the Czernin Palace, in Prague, Czech Republic, on May 31, 2024.

Jordan seizes 9.5 million Captagon pills at Saudi border

KHALIL MAZRAAWI/afp/AFP via Getty Images

Jordan to host emergency meeting on humanitarian response in Gaza

Permanent Representative of Jordan to the United Nations Mahmoud D. Hmoud, Permanent Representative of Qatar to the United Nations Alya bint Ahmed Al Thani, Permanent Representative of the United Arab Emirates to the United Nations Lana Nusseibeh, Permanent Observer of Palestine to the United Nations Riyad H. Mansour, and Ambassador and Permanent Representative of Egypt to the United Nations Osama Abdel Khalek speak to members of the media following the United Nations Security Council meeting on the situati

Jordan thwarts Iran-linked weapons plot as Hamas denies involvement

AHMAD SHOURA/AFP via Getty Images

Israeli settlers attack aid convoy of 98 trucks heading to Gaza from Jordan

A man films with his phone a damaged trailer truck that was carrying humanitarian aid supplies.

Hanna Davis

In Amman, reporting on refugees

Lyse Mauvais

In Amman, reporting on humanitarian crises

US President Joe Biden and First Lady Jill Biden greet Jordan's King Abdullah II.

Biden meets with Jordanian king as Israel begins Rafah evacuation

Ahead of his lunch with Jordan's King Abdullah II, President Joe Biden "reiterated his clear position on Rafah" in a phone call with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

Palestinians inspect the damage to buildings after Israeli bombardment in Rafah in the southern Gaza Strip, on April 29, 2024 amid the ongoing conflict between Israel and the Palestinian militant group Hamas.

Pressure builds for Gaza cease-fire as Israel readies to invade Rafah

As US Secretary of State Antony Blinken pushed for a cease-fire, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu vowed to launch a Rafah incursion "with or without a deal.”

KHALED DESOUKI/AFP via Getty Images

Saudi Arabia ramps up regional diplomacy to avert Iran-Israel war

Saudi Arabia has reiterated calls for calm in the region amid rising tensions in the wake of the Iranian attack on Israel this week.

The Wadi Mujib river in Jordan.

Analysis

Why Israel is likely to accept Jordan’s request for more water

Experts estimate it is in Israel’s national interest to accept Jordan's request to extend the water supply agreement.

Rina Bassist

By Rina Bassist

In Paris, reporting on Israeli politics and European affairs

A picture taken during a tour organized by the Jordanian army shows soldiers patrolling along the border with Syria to prevent drug trafficking, Feb. 17, 2022.

Jordan arrests dozens in crackdown against drug smuggling from Syria

Dozens of people were arrested inside Jordan, as the kingdom ramps up efforts to fight drug smuggling attempts mainly on the border with Syria.

King of Jordan Abdullah II ibn Al Hussein and US President Joe Biden pose for a photo after the king's arrival on the North Portico of the White House on Feb. 12, 2024, in Washington.

'We oppose any forced displacement of Palestinians,' Biden tells king of Jordan

King Abdullah met with Biden to discuss aid to Gaza, efforts to reach a cease-fire between Israel and Hamas, and related issues ahead of a looming Israeli offensive.

US President Joe Biden meets with King Abdullah II of Jordan in the Oval Office of the White House on July 19, 2021 in Washington, DC.

Jordan's King Abdullah set to meet Biden as Gaza tests ties

King Abdullah II must balance Jordan's dependence on the United States with public anger over US support for Israel's war in Gaza.

People wave Palestinian and Jordanian flags as they march during a demonstration near the US Embassy in solidarity with the people of Gaza, Amman, Jordan, Dec. 15, 2023.

Pro-Palestinian activists in Jordan face arrest, harassment by authorities

Human Rights Watch documented the arrest of several people who took part in pro-Palestinian protests in Jordan and condemned the use of a controversial cybercrime law.

French Foreign Minister Stephane Sejourne chairs a United Nations Security Council (UNSC) meeting on the Middle East, including the situation in Gaza and Israel on Jan. 23, 2024, in New York City.

France's new FM Sejourne makes first visit to Egypt, Lebanon, Israel & Jordan

French Foreign Minister Stéphane Séjourné is set to visit the Middle East, meeting with almost all the parties involved in the Gaza war, except Qatar.

ISMAILIA, EGYPT - JANUARY 10: A ship transits the Suez Canal towards the Red Sea on January 10, 2024 in Ismailia, Egypt. In the wake of Israel's war on Gaza after the October 7 Hamas attack on Israel, Houthi rebels in Yemen pledged disruption on all ships destined for Israel through the Red Sea's Suez Canal. The disruption on world trade is evident in the number of companies using this container ship route - a 90 per cent decline compared to figures one year ago. (Photo by Sayed Hassan/Getty Images)

Red Sea attacks push global firms to seek overland shipping alternatives

An Israeli company is sending goods overland from the United Arab Emirates through Saudi Arabia and other firms are looking at different arrangements as US strikes fail to deter Houthi attacks.

US soldiers participate in the annual military exercises known as "Eager Lion", near Maan some 200 kilometres south of the capital Amman on May 17, 2017.

Breaking | Last Updated: January 29, 2024, 4:45 pm

3 US troops killed, 25 wounded in Iran-backed drone attack in Jordan

President Joe Biden has vowed to respond after US troops were killed by a suspected Iran-backed militia for first time since Israel's war in Gaza began.

KHALIL MAZRAAWI/afp/AFP via Getty Images

As Captagon war heats up, Jordan escalates airstrikes in Syria

Jordan has clashed with and struck alleged drug smugglers several times in recent weeks as the Captagon trade continues to thrive the region.