JORDAN: Thousands of demonstrators protest food prices, denounce government

In an unprecedented development in Jordan, protests similar to those that have rocked Tunisia and Algeria in recent weeks erupted in the Arab kingdom Friday.

Thousands of people took to the streets of the capital, Amman, and several other cities to protest rising food prices and unemployment, media reports say.

Aside from complaints, they also pointed rare and stinging criticism toward the Jordanian government, headed by Prime Minister Samir Rifai.

"Down with Rifai's government," protestors chanted as they marched through Amman's city center, according to Agence France-Presse. "Unify yourselves because the government wants to eat your flesh. Raise fuel prices to fill their pockets with millions."

Similar protest marches were held in the cities of Maan, Karak, Slat and Irbid, where demonstrators shouted that Jordan was "too big" for Rifai, the report added. All in all, around 8,000 people turned out for the marches -- despite previous measures by the Jordanian government to create more jobs and control rising commodity prices.

According to a report by Egypt's state-run Al Ahram news agency, tanks surrounded the Arab kingdom's major cities and checkpoints and barriers had been set up.

The report, headlined "Jordan fears another Tunisia", claimed that Jordan's King Abdullah II had set up a special task force in his palace that included military and intelligence officials to try to prevent the unrest from escalating further.

It said the country's main opposition group -- the Islamist Muslim Brotherhood -- had not participated in Friday's demonstrations, but the group will reportedly join a sit-in outside parliament Sunday, along with the the country's 14 trade unions, a move that would probably increase the pressure on the Jordanian authorities.

-- Alexandra Sandels in Beirut

Photos: Protestors in Jordan complained that the government's efforts to create jobs and reduce commodity prices were not enough. Credits, from top: Reuters; Agence France-Presse.

Comments

[rakan almasri]

to the jordanian citizen
remeber thise country is safe and stabile please keep it like thise
our king abdula will take care of any citizen complaint
please dont get too exited of the crisses in egypt
iran is growing its way to rule the arab please be aware of this

[dh]

Everyone in the world sees the Tunisian revolution as a positive sign, except for those who are threatened by an independent, representative, democratic government in Tunisia:

*Israel (independent nations don't support violent, oppressive occupiers as neighbors, if they can help it)
*Saudi Arabia
*Egypt
*various other tyrants in the Middle East who see their grip on power unraveling

The claims that Islamists will take over Tunisia is plainly idiotic. Tunisia, you no-nothing moron, is one of the most liberal, secular, and educated countries in the Middle East.

[MrJBond]

Well, another Arab garbage dump--so-called country Tunisia-is having problems. Of course, in typical Arab fashion, the Arabs will blame someone else instead of themselves. The problems are simply due to a failure to modernize. Additionally, the rationale to remain backward to be prejudice is the interpreation of their religion, Islam. All that these people have done is to convert Islam into superstition that makes science and critical thinking impossible.

No matter who the Arabs blame and how much they use Islam as a cover to engage in superstitious beliefs, hatred, petty internal fighting, and other nonsense, some recognize that the world is passing them by. These Arabs know that they are in a black hole going even further backwards while seeing the rest of the world attempt to emerge or maintain relative prospertiy.

To blame Israel for Arab problems is not solving the problems for which Israel is not an issue, and NEVER was the issue. Israel is a mirror to the Arab dictatorship "kleptocracies" of what can be attained in a society that promotes democracy and exchange of ideas. Israel is the image that these Arabs cannot stand to recognize because in typical Arab Moslem fashion, Arab failures are always someone else's fault, which makes Israel a convenient target of Arab stupidity and manifest social and cultural retardation.

Nothing innovative originates from the Arab world in science, literature, art, and other facets of life. The only expertise the Arabs have is hatred and chaos.
That Tunisia is in chaos--good. May be the Tunisians will stop the Arab descent in to oblivion for its own sake by realizing that superstition and stupidity to blame Israel are not the reasons why the Tunisians have a bad eeconomy and are, like all the Arab dictatorships, socially and culturally useless.

[Almo, Egypt]

long live the arab revolutions! about time we rid ourselves of these western appeasing governments only caring about self interest and conforming to a western agenda in the region for the sake of regime preservation. Time we rid ourselves of these people and got leaders who represent what we want, what we stand for, leaders who cater to OUR concerns not imposed concerns of western imperialism.

[Lazulio]

.... and yet another Middle-Eastern country slides toward Sharian Totalitarianism. Care for a game of dominos anyone?

[atrayu]

Just watch as the Arab governments and haters of freedom come out and blame Israel..

[Ray]

Next government to be move out will be Egypt Government with Hosny Moubarek...