Activists in Jordan called for further protests on Sunday (31/3) after days of demonstrations against the war in Gaza and the end of Jordan’s peace agreement with Israel.
Jordan, where nearly half the population is of Palestinian descent, has taken to the streets and held regular rallies in Amman in solidarity with Gaza since Israel’s military onslaught in response to the unprecedented Hamas offensive on Oct. 7.
Recent protests have resulted in rare clashes between demonstrators and security forces in the capital and in Jordan’s largest Palestinian refugee camp.
The Jordanian Youth Summit group urged people to return Sunday night to the Israeli embassy in Amman to support the resistance in Gaza and demand the cancellation of the Israeli-Jordan peace agreement and severing all ties with Israel.
In 1994, Jordan became the second Arab country, after Egypt in 1979, to sign a peace treaty with Israel.
“No to the Zionist embassy on Jordanian territory,” read one banner at Saturday’s embassy protest, where people have gathered every night since the holy month of Ramadan began more than two weeks ago.
Also read: Jordan and the US Discuss Accelerating a Ceasefire in Gaza
Security forces said on Sunday they had arrested a number of protesters 20 kilometers north of Amman at the Beqaa refugee camp.
Public security spokesman Amer Al-Sartaawi said in a statement that a number of rioters were arrested following acts of rioting and vandalism, arson and throwing stones at vehicles on public roads.
Beqaa Camp, which houses more than 100,000 Palestinians, is one of six camps set up to accommodate a wave of refugees who fled the West Bank and Gaza Strip during the 1967 Arab-Israeli war.
Also read: Jordanian King Abdullah II emphasizes support for Palestine
Jordan has 2.2 million people registered with UNRWA, the UN agency for Palestinian refugees.
Many have been granted Jordanian citizenship. Hamas attacks on Israel in October resulted in the deaths of 1,160 people, most of them civilians, according to an AFP tally of official Israeli figures.
Israel responded with a relentless military campaign that has so far killed 32,782 people, mostly women and children, according to the health ministry in Hamas-ruled Gaza. (AFP/Z-8)
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