Jordan's King Abdullah receives Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan in Amman. AFP / Jordanian Royal Palace
Jordan's King Abdullah receives Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan in Amman. AFP / Jordanian Royal Palace
Jordan's King Abdullah receives Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan in Amman. AFP / Jordanian Royal Palace
Jordan's King Abdullah receives Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan in Amman. AFP / Jordanian Royal Palace

King Abdullah says Saudi Arabia has kept up support for Jordan


Khaled Yacoub Oweis
  • English
  • Arabic

Saudi Arabia has maintained support for Jordan since a royal rift four months ago, King Abdullah said on Tuesday.

King Salman has been “supportive of the kingdom in the face of all challenges, including the sedition case,” King Abdullah said after meeting Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan in Amman.

Ties between the two countries cooled after the rift came out in the open in March and security forces arrested 17 people the authorities said were involved in seditious activity.

Most prominent among them was Jordanian economist Bassem Awadallah, a senior adviser to King Salman.

Mr Awadallah was a former confidant of King Abdullah and headed the Jordanian Royal Court. He is also a US national and has a Saudi passport.

“The strong relations between Jordan and Saudi Arabia are established and solid and are not shaken by doubt and hearsay,” the official Jordanian news agency quoted King Abdullah as saying.

In June, a secret court sentenced Mr Awadallah, along with a distant cousin of the king, to 15 years in prison on sedition charges they both denied. Security forces had released the 15 other men in March.

Authorities said Mr Awadallah was an associate of Prince Hamzah bin Hussein, a younger half-brother of King Abdullah, who was looking to depose the king.

The prince was not arrested but he has not been seen in public since April 11, when he was photographed with the king.

King Abdullah told CNN while on a visit to Washington last month that although Mr Awadallah has Saudi ties, “we are dealing with this as a domestic problem”.

“Finger-pointing does not help at all. We have enough problems in the region. We need to move forward,” the king said.

During his trip to Amman, Prince Faisal “affirmed Saudi eagerness to shore up co-operation with Jordan”, the Jordanian news agency reported.

Saudi Arabia is a major donor to Jordan.

Along with Kuwait and the UAE, Saudi Arabia deposited at least $1 billion in the Jordanian Central Bank in 2018.

The money transfer came after mass demonstrations that same year against the government as Jordan’s economy deteriorated.

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Essentials
The flights: You can fly from the UAE to Iceland with one stop in Europe with a variety of airlines. Return flights with Emirates from Dubai to Stockholm, then Icelandair to Reykjavik, cost from Dh4,153 return. The whole trip takes 11 hours. British Airways flies from Abu Dhabi and Dubai to Reykjavik, via London, with return flights taking 12 hours and costing from Dh2,490 return, including taxes. 
The activities: A half-day Silfra snorkelling trip costs 14,990 Icelandic kronur (Dh544) with Dive.is. Inside the Volcano also takes half a day and costs 42,000 kronur (Dh1,524). The Jokulsarlon small-boat cruise lasts about an hour and costs 9,800 kronur (Dh356). Into the Glacier costs 19,500 kronur (Dh708). It lasts three to four hours.
The tours: It’s often better to book a tailor-made trip through a specialist operator. UK-based Discover the World offers seven nights, self-driving, across the island from £892 (Dh4,505) per person. This includes three nights’ accommodation at Hotel Husafell near Into the Glacier, two nights at Hotel Ranga and two nights at the Icelandair Hotel Klaustur. It includes car rental, plus an iPad with itinerary and tourist information pre-loaded onto it, while activities can be booked as optional extras. More information inspiredbyiceland.com

UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets

The Baghdad Clock

Shahad Al Rawi, Oneworld

UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Our legal advisor

Ahmad El Sayed is Senior Associate at Charles Russell Speechlys, a law firm headquartered in London with offices in the UK, Europe, the Middle East and Hong Kong.

Experience: Commercial litigator who has assisted clients with overseas judgments before UAE courts. His specialties are cases related to banking, real estate, shareholder disputes, company liquidations and criminal matters as well as employment related litigation. 

Education: Sagesse University, Beirut, Lebanon, in 2005.

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Updated: August 04, 2021, 5:19 AM`