Hussein Bin Talal
   HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

Hussein bin Talal (14 November 1935 – 7 February 1999) was
King of Jordan The king of the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan () is the monarchical head of state of Jordan. He serves as the head of the Jordanian monarchy—the Hashemites, Hashemite dynasty. The king is addressed as Majesty, His Majesty (). Jordan is a const ...
from 1952 until his death in 1999. As a member of the
Hashemite The Hashemites (), also House of Hashim, are the Dynasty, royal family of Jordan, which they have ruled since 1921, and were the royal family of the kingdoms of Kingdom of Hejaz, Hejaz (1916–1925), Arab Kingdom of Syria, Syria (1920), and Kingd ...
dynasty, the royal family of
Jordan Jordan, officially the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan, is a country in the Southern Levant region of West Asia. Jordan is bordered by Syria to the north, Iraq to the east, Saudi Arabia to the south, and Israel and the occupied Palestinian ter ...
since 1921, Hussein was traditionally considered a 40th-generation
direct descendant A lineal or direct descendant, in legal usage, is a blood relative in a person's direct line of descent – the children, grandchildren, great-grandchildren, etc. In a legal procedure sense, lineal descent refers to the acquisition of estate by ...
of the
Islam Islam is an Abrahamic religions, Abrahamic monotheistic religion based on the Quran, and the teachings of Muhammad. Adherents of Islam are called Muslims, who are estimated to number Islam by country, 2 billion worldwide and are the world ...
ic prophet
Muhammad Muhammad (8 June 632 CE) was an Arab religious and political leader and the founder of Islam. Muhammad in Islam, According to Islam, he was a prophet who was divinely inspired to preach and confirm the tawhid, monotheistic teachings of A ...
. Hussein was born in
Amman Amman ( , ; , ) is the capital and the largest city of Jordan, and the country's economic, political, and cultural center. With a population of four million as of 2021, Amman is Jordan's primate city and is the largest city in the Levant ...
as the eldest child of Talal bin Abdullah and Zein Al-Sharaf. Talal was at that time the heir to his own father,
King Abdullah I Abdullah I (Abdullah bin Hussein; 2 February 188220 July 1951) was the ruler of Jordan and its predecessor state Transjordan from 1921 until his assassination in 1951. He was the Emir of Transjordan, a British protectorate, until 1946, when he ...
. Hussein began his schooling in Amman, continuing his education abroad. After Talal became king in 1951, Hussein was named
heir apparent An heir apparent is a person who is first in the order of succession and cannot be displaced from inheriting by the birth of another person. A person who is first in the current order of succession but could be displaced by the birth of a more e ...
. The
Jordanian Parliament The Parliament of Jordan ( ') is the bicameral Jordanian national assembly. Established by the 1952 Constitution, the legislature consists of two houses: the Senate ( ''Majlis Al-Aayan'') and the House of Representatives ( ''Majlis Al-Nuwaab' ...
forced Talal to
abdicate Abdication is the act of formally relinquishing monarchical authority. Abdications have played various roles in the succession procedures of monarchies. While some cultures have viewed abdication as an extreme abandonment of duty, in other soci ...
a year later due to his illness, and a
regency council In a monarchy, a regent () is a person appointed to govern a state because the actual monarch is a minor, absent, incapacitated or unable to discharge their powers and duties, or the throne is vacant and a new monarch has not yet been dete ...
was appointed until Hussein came of age. He was enthroned at the age of 17 on in 1953. Hussein was married four separate times and fathered eleven children. Hussein, a
constitutional monarch Constitutional monarchy, also known as limited monarchy, parliamentary monarchy or democratic monarchy, is a form of monarchy in which the monarch exercises their authority in accordance with a constitution and is not alone in making decisions. ...
, started his rule by allowing the formation of the only democratically elected government in Jordan's history in
1956 Events January * January 1 – The Anglo-Egyptian Sudan, Anglo-Egyptian Condominium ends in Sudan after 57 years. * January 8 – Operation Auca: Five U.S. evangelical Christian Missionary, missionaries, Nate Saint, Roger Youderian, E ...
, which he forced to resign a few months later, declaring
martial law Martial law is the replacement of civilian government by military rule and the suspension of civilian legal processes for military powers. Martial law can continue for a specified amount of time, or indefinitely, and standard civil liberties ...
and banning political parties. Under Hussein, Jordan fought three wars with Israel, including the 1967
Six-Day War The Six-Day War, also known as the June War, 1967 Arab–Israeli War or Third Arab–Israeli War, was fought between Israel and a coalition of Arab world, Arab states, primarily United Arab Republic, Egypt, Syria, and Jordan from 5 to 10June ...
, which ended in Jordan's loss of the
West Bank The West Bank is located on the western bank of the Jordan River and is the larger of the two Palestinian territories (the other being the Gaza Strip) that make up the State of Palestine. A landlocked territory near the coast of the Mediter ...
. In 1970, Hussein expelled
Palestinian militants Palestinian political violence refers to acts of violence or terrorism committed by Palestinians with the intent to accomplish political goals in the context of the Israeli–Palestinian conflict. Common objectives of political violence by Pal ...
from Jordan in what became known as
Black September Black September (), also known as the Jordanian Civil War, was an armed conflict between Jordan, led by Hussein of Jordan, King Hussein, and the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO), led by chairman Yasser Arafat. The main phase of the fight ...
. The King renounced Jordan's ties to the West Bank in 1988 after the
Palestine Liberation Organization The Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO; ) is a Palestinian nationalism, Palestinian nationalist coalition that is internationally recognized as the official representative of the Palestinians, Palestinian people in both the occupied Pale ...
was recognized internationally as the sole representative of the Palestinians. He lifted martial law and reintroduced
elections An election is a formal group decision-making process whereby a population chooses an individual or multiple individuals to hold public office. Elections have been the usual mechanism by which modern representative democracy has operated ...
in
1989 1989 was a turning point in political history with the "Revolutions of 1989" which ended communism in Eastern Bloc of Europe, starting in Poland and Hungary, with experiments in power-sharing coming to a head with the opening of the Berlin W ...
when riots over price hikes spread in southern Jordan. In 1994 he became the second Arab head of state to sign a peace treaty with Israel. At the time of Hussein's accession in 1953, Jordan was a young nation and controlled the
West Bank The West Bank is located on the western bank of the Jordan River and is the larger of the two Palestinian territories (the other being the Gaza Strip) that make up the State of Palestine. A landlocked territory near the coast of the Mediter ...
. The country had few natural resources, and a large Palestinian refugee population as a result of the
1948 Palestine War The 1948 Palestine war was fought in the territory of what had been, at the start of the war, British-ruled Mandatory Palestine. During the war, the British withdrew from Palestine, Zionist forces conquered territory and established the Stat ...
. Hussein led his country through four turbulent decades of the
Arab–Israeli conflict The Arab–Israeli conflict is a geopolitical phenomenon involving military conflicts and a variety of disputes between Israel and many Arab world, Arab countries. It is largely rooted in the historically supportive stance of the Arab League ...
and the
Cold War The Cold War was a period of global Geopolitics, geopolitical rivalry between the United States (US) and the Soviet Union (USSR) and their respective allies, the capitalist Western Bloc and communist Eastern Bloc, which lasted from 1947 unt ...
, successfully balancing pressures from
Arab nationalists Arab nationalism () is a political ideology asserting that Arabs constitute a single nation. As a traditional nationalist ideology, it promotes Arab culture and civilization, celebrates Arab history, the Arabic language and Arabic literatur ...
,
Islamists Islamism is a range of Religion, religious and Politics, political ideological movements that believe that Islam should influence political systems. Its proponents believe Islam is innately political, and that Islam as a political system is su ...
, the
Soviet Union The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR), commonly known as the Soviet Union, was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 until Dissolution of the Soviet ...
,
Western countries The Western world, also known as the West, primarily refers to various nations and states in Western Europe, Northern America, and Australasia; with some debate as to whether those in Eastern Europe and Latin America also constitute the West. ...
, and Israel, transforming Jordan by the end of his 46-year reign into a stable modern state. After 1967 he engaged in efforts to solve the
Israeli–Palestinian conflict The Israeli–Palestinian conflict is an ongoing military and political conflict about Territory, land and self-determination within the territory of the former Mandatory Palestine. Key aspects of the conflict include the Israeli occupation ...
. He acted as a conciliatory intermediate between various Middle Eastern rivals, and came to be seen as the region's peacemaker. He was revered for pardoning political dissidents and opponents, and giving them senior posts in the government. Hussein, who survived dozens of assassination attempts and plots to overthrow him, was the region's longest-reigning leader. He died at the age of 63 from cancer in 1999 and was succeeded by his eldest son, Abdullah II.


Early life

Hussein was born at Al-Qasr Al-Sagheer at Raghadan Palace in
Amman Amman ( , ; , ) is the capital and the largest city of Jordan, and the country's economic, political, and cultural center. With a population of four million as of 2021, Amman is Jordan's primate city and is the largest city in the Levant ...
on 14 November 1935 to Crown Prince Talal and Princess Zein al-Sharaf. He was the eldest among his siblings, three brothers and two sistersPrincess Asma, Prince Muhammad, Prince Hassan, Prince Muhsin, and Princess Basma. During one cold Ammani winter, his baby sister Princess Asma died from
pneumonia Pneumonia is an Inflammation, inflammatory condition of the lung primarily affecting the small air sacs known as Pulmonary alveolus, alveoli. Symptoms typically include some combination of Cough#Classification, productive or dry cough, ches ...
, an indication of how poor his family was thenthey could not afford heating in their house. Hussein was the
namesake A namesake is a person, place, or thing bearing the name of another. Most commonly, it refers to an individual who is purposely named after another (e.g. John F. Kennedy Jr would be the namesake of John F. Kennedy). In common parlance, it may ...
of his paternal great-grandfather, Hussein bin Ali (
Sharif of Mecca The Sharif of Mecca () was the title of the leader of the Sharifate of Mecca, traditional steward of the Holiest sites in Islam, Islamic holy cities of Mecca and Medina. The term ''sharif'' is Arabic for "noble", "highborn", and is used to desc ...
), the leader of the 1916
Arab Revolt The Arab Revolt ( ), also known as the Great Arab Revolt ( ), was an armed uprising by the Hashemite-led Arabs of the Hejaz against the Ottoman Empire amidst the Middle Eastern theatre of World War I. On the basis of the McMahon–Hussein Co ...
against the
Ottoman Empire The Ottoman Empire (), also called the Turkish Empire, was an empire, imperial realm that controlled much of Southeast Europe, West Asia, and North Africa from the 14th to early 20th centuries; it also controlled parts of southeastern Centr ...
. Hussein claimed to be an
agnatic Patrilineality, also known as the male line, the spear side or agnatic kinship, is a common kinship system in which an individual's family membership derives from and is recorded through their father's lineage. It generally involves the inheritanc ...
descendant of
Muhammad Muhammad (8 June 632 CE) was an Arab religious and political leader and the founder of Islam. Muhammad in Islam, According to Islam, he was a prophet who was divinely inspired to preach and confirm the tawhid, monotheistic teachings of A ...
's daughter
Fatimah Fatima bint Muhammad (; 605/15–632 CE), commonly known as Fatima al-Zahra' (), was the daughter of the Islamic prophet Muhammad and his wife Khadija bint Khuwaylid, Khadija. Fatima's husband was Ali, the fourth of the Rashidun caliphs and ...
and her husband
Ali Ali ibn Abi Talib (; ) was the fourth Rashidun caliph who ruled from until his assassination in 661, as well as the first Shia Imam. He was the cousin and son-in-law of the Islamic prophet Muhammad. Born to Abu Talib ibn Abd al-Muttalib an ...
, the fourth caliph, since Hussein belonged to the
Hashemite The Hashemites (), also House of Hashim, are the Dynasty, royal family of Jordan, which they have ruled since 1921, and were the royal family of the kingdoms of Kingdom of Hejaz, Hejaz (1916–1925), Arab Kingdom of Syria, Syria (1920), and Kingd ...
family, which had ruled
Mecca Mecca, officially Makkah al-Mukarramah, is the capital of Mecca Province in the Hejaz region of western Saudi Arabia; it is the Holiest sites in Islam, holiest city in Islam. It is inland from Jeddah on the Red Sea, in a narrow valley above ...
for over 700 yearsuntil its 1925 conquest by the
House of Saud The House of Saud ( ) is the ruling royal family of Saudi Arabia. It is composed of the descendants of Muhammad bin Saud, founder of the Emirate of Diriyah, known as the First Saudi State, (1727–1818), and his brothers, though the ruling ...
and has ruled
Jordan Jordan, officially the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan, is a country in the Southern Levant region of West Asia. Jordan is bordered by Syria to the north, Iraq to the east, Saudi Arabia to the south, and Israel and the occupied Palestinian ter ...
since 1921. The Hashemites, the oldest ruling dynasty in the
Muslim world The terms Islamic world and Muslim world commonly refer to the Islamic community, which is also known as the Ummah. This consists of all those who adhere to the religious beliefs, politics, and laws of Islam or to societies in which Islam is ...
, are the second-oldest-ruling dynasty in the world (after the
Imperial House of Japan The is the reigning dynasty of Japan, consisting of those members of the extended family of the reigning emperor of Japan who undertake official and public duties. Under the present constitution of Japan, the emperor is "the symbol of the State ...
). Hussein's maternal grandmother, Widjan Hanim, was the daughter of Shakir Pasha who was the Ottoman governor of Cyprus. The young prince started his elementary education in Amman. He was then educated at Victoria College in
Alexandria Alexandria ( ; ) is the List of cities and towns in Egypt#Largest cities, second largest city in Egypt and the List of coastal settlements of the Mediterranean Sea, largest city on the Mediterranean coast. It lies at the western edge of the Nile ...
, Egypt. He proceeded to
Harrow School Harrow School () is a Public school (United Kingdom), public school (English boarding school for boys) in Harrow on the Hill, Greater London, England. The school was founded in 1572 by John Lyon (school founder), John Lyon, a local landowner an ...
in England, where he befriended his paternal second cousin
Faisal II of Iraq Faisal II (; 2 May 1935 – 14 July 1958) was the last King of Iraq. He reigned from 4 April 1939 until July 1958, when he was killed during the 14 July Revolution. This regicide marked the end of the thirty-seven-year-old Hashemite monarchy in ...
, who was also studying there. Faisal was then King of Hashemite Iraq, but was under regency since he was still a minor. Hussein's grandfather,
King Abdullah I Abdullah I (Abdullah bin Hussein; 2 February 188220 July 1951) was the ruler of Jordan and its predecessor state Transjordan from 1921 until his assassination in 1951. He was the Emir of Transjordan, a British protectorate, until 1946, when he ...
, the founder of modern Jordan, did not see in his two sons Talal and Nayef potential for kingship, and therefore he focused his efforts on the upbringing of his grandson Hussein. A special relationship grew between the two. Abdullah assigned Hussein a private tutor for extra Arabic lessons, and Hussein acted as interpreter for his grandfather during his meetings with foreign leaders, as Abdullah understood English but could not speak it. On 20 July 1951, 15-year-old Prince Hussein travelled to
Jerusalem Jerusalem is a city in the Southern Levant, on a plateau in the Judaean Mountains between the Mediterranean Sea, Mediterranean and the Dead Sea. It is one of the List of oldest continuously inhabited cities, oldest cities in the world, and ...
to perform
Friday prayers Friday prayer, or congregational prayer (), is the meeting together of Muslims for communal prayer and service at midday every Friday. In Islam, the day itself is called ''Yawm al-Jum'ah'' (shortened to ''Jum'ah''), which translated from Arabic me ...
at the Masjid Al-Aqsa with his grandfather. A Palestinian assassin opened fire on Abdullah and his grandson, amid rumours that the King had been planning to sign a peace treaty with the newly established state of Israel. Abdullah died, but Hussein survived the assassination attempt and, according to witnesses, pursued the assassin. Hussein was also shot, but the bullet was deflected by a medal on his uniform that his grandfather had given him.


Reign


Accession

Abdullah's eldest son, Talal, was proclaimed
King of Jordan The king of the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan () is the monarchical head of state of Jordan. He serves as the head of the Jordanian monarchy—the Hashemites, Hashemite dynasty. The king is addressed as Majesty, His Majesty (). Jordan is a const ...
. Talal appointed his son Hussein as crown prince on 9 September 1951. After a reign lasting less than thirteen months, the
Parliament In modern politics and history, a parliament is a legislative body of government. Generally, a modern parliament has three functions: Representation (politics), representing the Election#Suffrage, electorate, making laws, and overseeing ...
forced King Talal to
abdicate Abdication is the act of formally relinquishing monarchical authority. Abdications have played various roles in the succession procedures of monarchies. While some cultures have viewed abdication as an extreme abandonment of duty, in other soci ...
due to his mental statedoctors had diagnosed
schizophrenia Schizophrenia () is a mental disorder characterized variously by hallucinations (typically, Auditory hallucination#Schizophrenia, hearing voices), delusions, thought disorder, disorganized thinking and behavior, and Reduced affect display, f ...
. In his brief reign, Talal had introduced a modern, somewhat liberal
constitution A constitution is the aggregate of fundamental principles or established precedents that constitute the legal basis of a polity, organization or other type of entity, and commonly determines how that entity is to be governed. When these pri ...
in 1952 that is still in use today. Hussein was proclaimed king on 11 August 1952, succeeding to the throne three months before his 17th birthday. A telegram from Jordan was brought in to Hussein while he was staying with his mother abroad in
Lausanne Lausanne ( , ; ; ) is the capital and largest List of towns in Switzerland, city of the Swiss French-speaking Cantons of Switzerland, canton of Vaud, in Switzerland. It is a hilly city situated on the shores of Lake Geneva, about halfway bet ...
, Switzerland, addressed to 'His Majesty King Hussein'. "I did not need to open it to know that my days as a schoolboy were over," Hussein later wrote in his memoirs. He returned home to cheering crowds. A three-man regency council made up of the prime minister and heads of the
Senate A senate is a deliberative assembly, often the upper house or chamber of a bicameral legislature. The name comes from the ancient Roman Senate (Latin: ''Senatus''), so-called as an assembly of the senior (Latin: ''senex'' meaning "the el ...
and the
House of Representatives House of Representatives is the name of legislative bodies in many countries and sub-national entities. In many countries, the House of Representatives is the lower house of a bicameral legislature, with the corresponding upper house often ...
was appointed until he became 18 (by the Muslim calendar). Meanwhile, Hussein pursued further study at the
Royal Military Academy Sandhurst The Royal Military Academy Sandhurst (RMAS or RMA Sandhurst), commonly known simply as Sandhurst, is one of several military academy, military academies of the United Kingdom and is the British Army's initial Commissioned officer, officer train ...
. He was enthroned on 2 May 1953, the same day that his cousin Faisal II assumed his constitutional powers as king of Iraq.


First years

The teenaged king inherited the throne not only of Jordan, but also of the
West Bank The West Bank is located on the western bank of the Jordan River and is the larger of the two Palestinian territories (the other being the Gaza Strip) that make up the State of Palestine. A landlocked territory near the coast of the Mediter ...
, captured by Jordan during the
1948 Arab–Israeli War The 1948 Arab–Israeli War, also known as the First Arab–Israeli War, followed the 1947–1948 civil war in Mandatory Palestine, civil war in Mandatory Palestine as the second and final stage of the 1948 Palestine war. The civil war becam ...
and
annexed Annexation, in international law, is the forcible acquisition and assertion of legal title over one state's territory by another state, usually following military occupation of the territory. In current international law, it is generally held to ...
in 1950. The country was poor in natural resources, and had a large Palestinian refugee population resulting from the warthe annexation of the West Bank had made Palestinians two-thirds of the population, outnumbering Jordanians. Upon assuming the throne, he appointed Fawzi Mulki as prime minister. Mulki's liberal policies, including freedom of the press, led to unrest as opposition groups started a propaganda campaign against the monarchy.
Palestinian Palestinians () are an Arab ethnonational group native to the Levantine region of Palestine. *: "Palestine was part of the first wave of conquest following Muhammad's death in 632 CE; Jerusalem fell to the Caliph Umar in 638. The indigenous p ...
fighters (
fedayeen Fedayeen ( ''fidāʻiyyūn'' "self-sacrificers") is an Arabic language, Arabic term used to refer to various military groups willing to sacrifice themselves for a larger campaign. Etymology "Fidayun" is the plural of "fidayi" ( ''fidāʻiyy'' ...
, meaning self-sacrificers) used Jordanian-controlled territory to launch attacks against Israel, sometimes provoking heavy retaliation. One reprisal operation by Israel became known as the
Qibya massacre The Qibya massacre occurred during Operation Shoshana, an Israeli so-called reprisal operation that occurred in October 1953, when IDF's Unit 101 led by future Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon attacked the village of Qibya in the West Ban ...
; it resulted in the death of 66 civilians in the West Bank village of
Qibya Qibya () is a Palestinian village in the West Bank, located northwest of Ramallah and exactly north of the large Israeli city of Modi'in. It is part of the Ramallah and al-Bireh Governorate, and according to the Palestinian Central Bureau of Sta ...
. The incident led to protests, and in 1954 Hussein dismissed Mulki amid the unrest and appointed staunch royalist Tawfik Abu Al-Huda. The country held parliamentary elections in October 1954, while the country's parties were not yet fully organized. Abu Al-Huda lasted only a year, and the government underwent reshuffling three times within the following year. The 1955
Baghdad Pact The Central Treaty Organization (CENTO), formerly known as the Middle East Treaty Organization (METO) and also known as the Baghdad Pact, was a military alliance of the Cold War. It was formed on 24 February 1955 by Iran, Iraq, Pakistan, Turkey, ...
was a Western attempt to form a Middle Eastern alliance to counter
Soviet The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR), commonly known as the Soviet Union, was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 until Dissolution of the Soviet ...
influence and
Gamal Abdel Nasser Gamal Abdel Nasser Hussein (15 January 1918 – 28 September 1970) was an Egyptian military officer and revolutionary who served as the second president of Egypt from 1954 until his death in 1970. Nasser led the Egyptian revolution of 1952 a ...
's Egypt. Jordan then found itself in the middle of
Cold War The Cold War was a period of global Geopolitics, geopolitical rivalry between the United States (US) and the Soviet Union (USSR) and their respective allies, the capitalist Western Bloc and communist Eastern Bloc, which lasted from 1947 unt ...
tensions. Britain, Turkey, and Iraq were members of the pact, and Jordan was pressured by Britain to join.
Nasserism Nasserism ( ) is an Arab nationalism, Arab nationalist and Arab socialism, Arab socialist List of political ideologies, political ideology based on the thinking of Gamal Abdel Nasser, one of the two principal leaders of the Egyptian Revolution ...
(a
socialist Socialism is an economic ideology, economic and political philosophy encompassing diverse Economic system, economic and social systems characterised by social ownership of the means of production, as opposed to private ownership. It describes ...
Pan-Arabist ideology) swept the
Arab World The Arab world ( '), formally the Arab homeland ( '), also known as the Arab nation ( '), the Arabsphere, or the Arab states, comprises a large group of countries, mainly located in West Asia and North Africa. While the majority of people in ...
in the 1950s, and the proposal to join the pact triggered large riots in the country. Curfews imposed by the
Arab Legion The Arab Legion () was the police force, then regular army, of the Emirate of Transjordan, a British protectorate, in the early part of the 20th century, and then of the Jordan, Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan, an independent state, with a final Ar ...
did little to alleviate the situation and tensions persisted throughout 1955. The local unrest, periodically fueled by propaganda transmitted from Egyptian radios, was only calmed after the King appointed a new prime minister who promised not to enter the Baghdad Pact. Saudi Arabia found common ground with Egypt in their suspicions of the Hashemites, both in Jordan and in Iraq. The Saudis massed troops near
Aqaba Aqaba ( , ; , ) is the only coastal city in Jordan and the largest and most populous city on the Gulf of Aqaba. Situated in southernmost Jordan, Aqaba is the administrative center of the Aqaba Governorate. The city had a population of 148, ...
on Jordan's southern borders in January 1956, and only withdrew after the British threatened to intervene on Jordan's behalf. Hussein realized that the Arab nationalist trend had dominated Arab politics, and decided to start downgrading Jordan's relationship with the British. On 1 March 1956, Hussein asserted Jordanian independence by Arabizing the army's command: he dismissed
Glubb Pasha Lieutenant-General Sir John Bagot Glubb, KCB, CMG, DSO, OBE, MC, KStJ, KPM (16 April 1897 – 17 March 1986), known as Glubb Pasha (; and known as Abu Hunaik by the Jordanians), was a British military officer who led and trained Transj ...
as the commander of the Arab Legion and replaced all the senior British officers with Jordanians, thereby renaming it into the " Jordan Armed Forces-Arab Army". He annulled the Anglo-Jordanian treaty and replaced British subsidies with Arab aid. Hussein's bold decisions were met with admiration at home and relations with Arab states improved.


"A liberal experiment"

Egyptian president Nasser received an outpouring of support from the Arab public after the
Egyptian–Czechoslovak arms deal The Egyptian''-''Czechoslovak arms deal was an agreement between the USSR and Egypt led by Gamal Abdel Nasser, announced in September 1955, to supply Egypt with more than $83 million worth of modern Soviet weaponry, through Czechoslovakia. The deal ...
was signed in September 1955, and his popularity in Jordan skyrocketed following the nationalization of the
Suez Canal The Suez Canal (; , ') is an artificial sea-level waterway in Egypt, Indo-Mediterranean, connecting the Mediterranean Sea to the Red Sea through the Isthmus of Suez and dividing Africa and Asia (and by extension, the Sinai Peninsula from the rest ...
in July 1956; his actions were seen as a powerful stance against Western
imperialism Imperialism is the maintaining and extending of Power (international relations), power over foreign nations, particularly through expansionism, employing both hard power (military and economic power) and soft power (diplomatic power and cultura ...
. Hussein was also supportive of the moves. The coinciding events in Egypt had Jordanian leftist opposition parties leaning greatly towards Nasser. The parliament that had been elected in 1954 was dissolved, and Hussein promised fair elections. The parliamentary election held on 21 October 1956 saw the National Socialist Party emerge as the largest party, winning 12 seats out of 40 in the House of Representatives. Hussein subsequently asked
Suleiman Nabulsi Suleiman Nabulsi (; 1908 – 14 October 1976) was a leftist Jordanian political figure who served as the 12th Prime Minister of Jordan in 1956–57. In October 1956 during the 1956 elections, the National Socialist Party headed by Nabulsi won ...
, leader of the Party, to form a government, the only
democratically elected government An election is a formal group decision-making process whereby a population chooses an individual or multiple individuals to hold public office. Elections have been the usual mechanism by which modern representative democracy has operated s ...
in Jordan's history. Hussein called this a "liberal experiment", to see how Jordanians would "react to responsibility". On 29 October 1956, the
Suez Crisis The Suez Crisis, also known as the Second Arab–Israeli War, the Tripartite Aggression in the Arab world and the Sinai War in Israel, was a British–French–Israeli invasion of Egypt in 1956. Israel invaded on 29 October, having done so w ...
erupted in Egypt, as Britain, France, and Israel launched a military offensive to seize control of the canal. Hussein was furious but Nabulsi discouraged him from intervening. Nabulsi's policies frequently clashed with that of King Hussein's, including on how to deal with the
Eisenhower Doctrine The Eisenhower Doctrine was a policy enunciated by U.S. president Dwight D. Eisenhower on January 5, 1957, within a "Special Message to the Congress on the Situation in the Middle East". Under the Eisenhower Doctrine, a Middle Eastern country c ...
. The King had requested Nabulsi, as prime minister, to crack down on the Communist Party and the media it controlled. Nabulsi wanted to move Jordan closer to Nasser's regime, but Hussein wanted it to stay in the Western camp. Disagreements between the monarchy and the leftist government culminated in March 1957 when Nabulsi provided Hussein with a list of senior officers in the military he wanted to dismiss; Hussein initially heeded the recommendations. However, Nabulsi then presented an expanded list, which Hussein refused to act upon. Nabulsi's government was forced to resign on 10 April. On 13 April, rioting broke in the
Zarqa Zarqa () is the capital of Zarqa Governorate in Jordan. Its name means "the blue (city)". It had a population of 635,160 inhabitants in 2015, and is the second most populous city in Jordan after Amman. History Although the area has been inhab ...
army barracks and the 21-year-old Hussein went to end the violence between royalist and Arab nationalist army units after the latter group spread rumors that the King had been assassinated. A 3,000-man Syrian force started moving south towards the Jordanian border in support of what they perceived as a coup attempt, but turned around after the army units showed their loyalty to the King. Two principal accounts emerged regarding the events at Zarqa, with the royalist version holding that the incident was an abortive coup by army chief of staff Ali Abu Nuwar against King Hussein, and the dissident version asserting that it was a staged, American-backed counter-coup by Hussein against the pan-Arabist movement in Jordan. In either case, Abu Nuwar and other senior Arabist officers resigned and were allowed to leave Jordan for Syria, where they incited opposition to the Jordanian monarchy. Hussein reacted by imposing
martial law Martial law is the replacement of civilian government by military rule and the suspension of civilian legal processes for military powers. Martial law can continue for a specified amount of time, or indefinitely, and standard civil liberties ...
. Although he eventually relaxed some of these measures, namely military curfews and severe press censorship, Hussein's moves significantly curtailed the constitutional democracy that existed in Jordan in the mid-1950s. The alleged conspirators were sentenced to 15 years
in absentia ''In Absentia'' is the seventh studio album by British progressive rock band Porcupine Tree, first released on 24 September 2002. The album marked several changes for the band, with it being the first with new drummer Gavin Harrison and the f ...
, but later on were pardoned by Hussein in 1964 as part of his reconciliation efforts with his exiled opposition, and were entrusted with senior positions in the government.


Arab Federation between Iraq and Jordan

The 1950s became known as the
Arab Cold War The Arab Cold War ( ''al-ḥarb al-`arabiyyah al-bāridah'') was a political rivalry in the Arab world from the early 1950s to the late 1970s and a part of the wider Cold War. It is generally accepted that the beginning of the Arab Cold War is ...
, due to the conflict between states led by Nasserist Egypt and traditionalist kingdoms led by Saudi Arabia. Egypt and Syria formed the
United Arab Republic The United Arab Republic (UAR; ) was a sovereign state in the Middle East from 1958 to 1971. It was initially a short-lived political union between Republic of Egypt (1953–1958), Egypt (including Occupation of the Gaza Strip by the United Ara ...
(UAR) on 1 February 1958, with the Republic's presidency occupied by Nasser. As a counterweight, Hussein and his cousin,
King Faisal II Faisal II (; 2 May 1935 – 14 July 1958) was the last King of Iraq. He reigned from 4 April 1939 until July 1958, when he was killed during the 14 July Revolution. This regicide marked the end of the thirty-seven-year-old Hashemite monarchy ...
of Hashemite Iraq, established the
Arab Federation The Hashemite Arab Federation was a short-lived confederation that lasted from 14 February to 2 August 1958, between the Hashemite kingdoms of Iraq and Jordan. Although the name implies a federal structure, it was ''de facto'' a confederation. T ...
on 14 February 1958 in an Amman ceremony. The two rival entities launched propaganda wars against each other through their radio broadcasts. Jordanian and Syrian forces clashed in March along the border. UAR-inspired conspiracies started to emerge against the Hashemite federation. An officer in Jordan was arrested for plotting to assassinate Hussein. It also emerged in Jordan that the UAR was planning to overthrow both Hashemite monarchies in July 1958. Jordan reacted by arresting 40 suspected army officers, and Hussein called in Iraqi army chief of staff Rafiq Aref to brief him on the exposed plot. Aref replied, "You look after yourselves. Iraq is a very stable country, unlike Jordan. If there are any worries it is Jordan that should be worried." Although Faisal and Hussein enjoyed a very close relationship, Faisal's Iraqi entourage looked down on Jordan; Hussein attributed this attitude to Iraqi crown prince
'Abd al-Ilah Abd al-Ilah of Hejaz () (; also written Abdul Ilah or Abdullah; 14 November 1913 – 14 July 1958) was a cousin and brother-in-law of Ghazi of Iraq, King Ghazi of the Kingdom of Iraq, Hashemite Kingdom of Iraq and was regent for his nephew Fai ...
's influence. The Lebanese, pro-Western government of
Camille Chamoun Camille Nimr Chamoun (, ; 3 April 19007 August 1987) was a Lebanese politician who served as the 2nd president of Lebanon from 1952 to 1958. He was one of the country's main Christian leaders during most of the Lebanese Civil War. Early yea ...
was also threatened to be toppled by growing UAR-supported domestic opposition groups. The Iraqis sent a brigade to Jordan on 13 July at Hussein's request. The Iraqi brigade's departure to Jordan gave the conspirators in Iraq, led by Brigadier
Abd al-Karim Qasim Abdul-Karim Qasim Muhammad Bakr al-Fadhli Al-Qaraghuli al-Zubaidi ( ' ; 21 November 1914 – 9 February 1963) was an Iraqi military officer and statesman who served as the Prime Minister and de facto leader of Iraq from 1958 until his ...
, the opportunity to strike. On 14 July, an Iraqi unit stormed the royal palace in Iraq, executed all members of the Iraqi royal family, and mutilated the bodies of the crown prince and the Iraqi prime minister of the Arab Federation,
Nuri Al-Said Nuri Pasha al-Said Al-Qaraghuli CH (; December 1888 – 15 July 1958) was an Iraqi politician and statesman who served eight terms as Prime Minister of Iraq. He served in various key cabinet and governmental positions in Iraq during its Briti ...
. Devastated, Hussein ordered a Jordanian expedition led by
Sharif Sharīf or Sherif (, 'noble', 'highborn'), also spelled shareef, feminine sharīfa (), plural ashrāf (), shurafāʾ (), or (in the Maghreb) shurfāʾ, is a title used to designate a person descended, or claiming to be descended, from the fami ...
Nasser Gamal Abdel Nasser Hussein (15 January 1918 – 28 September 1970) was an Egyptian military officer and revolutionary who served as the second president of Egypt from 1954 until his death in 1970. Nasser led the Egyptian revolution of 1952 a ...
to reclaim the Iraqi throne, but it was recalled after it was inside Iraq. Hussein, worried about a similar coup in Jordan, tightened
martial law Martial law is the replacement of civilian government by military rule and the suspension of civilian legal processes for military powers. Martial law can continue for a specified amount of time, or indefinitely, and standard civil liberties ...
. American troops landed in both Lebanon and Jordan as a show of support for pro-Western regimes in the region against the Nasserist tide. By October, the situation had calmed, and Western troops were recalled. Hussein went on a vacation to Switzerland on 10 November. As he was flying his own plane over Syria, it was intercepted by two Syrian jets that attempted to attack. Hussein outmaneuvered the Syrians and survived the assassination attempt, landing safely in Amman, where he received a hero's welcomehis popularity in Jordan skyrocketed overnight.
Golda Meir Golda Meir (; 3 May 1898 – 8 December 1978) was the prime minister of Israel, serving from 1969 to 1974. She was Israel's first and only female head of government. Born into a Jewish family in Kyiv, Kiev, Russian Empire (present-day Ukraine) ...
, an Israeli politician who would later become prime minister, was reported in 1958 as saying: "We all pray three times a day for King Hussein's safety and success." The Israelis preferred that Hussein remain in power rather than a Nasserist regime. Hussein for his part held secret meetings with Israeli officials, including Meir, seeing the fate, needs, and challenges (e.g. water supply) of Jordan inextricably linked with those of Israel and therefore to be solved with the cooperation of the latter. In 1959, Hussein embarked on a tour to different countries to consolidate bilateral ties. His visit to the United States gained him many friends in
Congress A congress is a formal meeting of the representatives of different countries, constituent states, organizations, trade unions, political parties, or other groups. The term originated in Late Middle English to denote an encounter (meeting of ...
after he spoke openly against Soviet influence in the Middle East, returning with a $50million aid package. Sadiq Al-Shar'a, an army general who accompanied Hussein to the United States, was found to have been plotting a coup against the monarchy. News of the arrest of the conspiring officers in Jordan coincided with Hussein's visit to the US. Hussein was tipped off to Al-Shar'a's involvement, but did not reveal it until they both landed back in Jordan. Al-Shar'a was tried and received the death penalty; Hussein reduced his sentence to life imprisonment. Four years later, Al-Shar'a was pardoned and appointed director of Jordan's passport office.


Assassination attempts

Hazza' Majali was appointed by Hussein to form a government; it consisted of loyalists who had persuaded Hussein to launch an offensive against the Iraqi government to restore the Hashemite monarchy. The expedition was cancelled amid British opposition and the weakened state of the
Royal Jordanian Air Force The Royal Jordanian Air Force (RJAF; Arabic: سلاح الجو الملكي الأردني, ''Silāḥ al-Jaww al-Malakī al-ʾUrdunī'') is the aerial warfare branch of the Jordanian Armed Forces. Founded in 1955, the RJAF serves as the primary ...
. UAR agents assassinated Prime Minister Majali with a bomb planted in his office. Twenty minutes later, another explosion went off; it was intended for Hussein as it was expected he would run to the scene, which he didhe was a few minutes late. Hussein, persuaded by
Habis Majali Habis Majali (; ‎ 1914 – April 22, 2001) was a Jordanian field marshal, who served as Chief of Staff of the Jordanian Armed Forces from 1958 to 1975, as minister of defense from 1967 to 1968. He became a politician in his later life and s ...
, Hazza's cousin and the army chief of staff, prepared for a retaliation against Syria, whose intelligence service was responsible for the assassination. He prepared three brigades in the north, but the operation was called off after combined pressures from the Americans and the British. Egyptian radios denounced Hussein as the "Judas of the Arabs". Hussein would be subjected to several more assassination attempts. One involved replacing his nose drops with strong acid. Another plot was uncovered after a large number of cats were found dead in the royal palace; it emerged that the cook had been trying poisons to use against the king. He was later pardoned and released after Hussein received a plea from the cook's daughter. Assassination attempts against the king subsided after a successful coup toppled the Syrian regime on 28 September 1961 and the UAR collapsed. With a calmed situation in Jordan, the King issued his slogan "Let us build this country to serve this nation." But critics considered the slogan mere lip service, saying Hussein showed little interest in the economic situation of the country, unlike the military and foreign relations aspects. In January 1962
Wasfi Tal Wasfi Tal (; also known as Wasfi Tell; 1920 – 28 November 1971) was a Jordanian politician, statesman and military officer. He served as the 15th Prime Minister of Jordan for three separate terms, 1962–63, 1965–67 and 1970 until his assass ...
was appointed prime minister. The young politician who worked to bring sweeping reforms resigned after Hussein sought to solidify his position following the rise of the Nasser-supporting
Ba'ath party The Arab Socialist Ba'ath Party ( ' ), also known simply as Bath Party (), was a political party founded in Syria by Michel Aflaq, Salah al-Din al-Bitar, and associates of Zaki al-Arsuzi. The party espoused Ba'athism, which is an ideology ...
to the governments of Iraq and Syria in two 1963 coups. The first direct contacts between Jordan and Israel started in early 1960s; Hussein had a Jewish doctor named Emmanuel Herbert who acted as intermediary between the two nations during Hussein's visits to London. In the talks, Hussein highlighted his commitment to a peaceful resolution to the
Israeli–Palestinian conflict The Israeli–Palestinian conflict is an ongoing military and political conflict about Territory, land and self-determination within the territory of the former Mandatory Palestine. Key aspects of the conflict include the Israeli occupation ...
. His secret rapprochement with Israel was followed by a public rapprochement with Egyptian president Gamal Abdel Nasser in 1964, which bolstered Hussein's popularity both in Jordan and in the Arab world. Hussein received a warm welcome after visiting West Bank cities afterwards. The rapprochement with Nasser happened during the 1964 Arab League summit in Cairo, where the
Palestine Liberation Army The Palestine Liberation Army (PLA; ) is ostensibly the military wing of the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO), set up at the 1964 Arab League summit held in Alexandria, Egypt, with the mission of fighting Israel. However, it has never b ...
(PLA) and the
Palestine Liberation Organization The Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO; ) is a Palestinian nationalism, Palestinian nationalist coalition that is internationally recognized as the official representative of the Palestinians, Palestinian people in both the occupied Pale ...
(PLO) were established, and where Jordan agreed to join the United Arab Command. During the summit Nasser also attempted to convince Hussein to purchase Soviet weapons, but the Americans provided Hussein with tanks and jets instead, with the understanding that they would not be used in the West Bank at Israel's request. The PLO identified itself as a representative of the Palestinian people, which clashed with Jordan's sovereignty claim over the West Bank. The PLO started to demand that the Jordanian government legalize their activities, including the setting up of Palestinian armed units to fight Israel; the requests were denied.


Samu Incident

Hussein later stated that during one of his meetings with Israeli representatives: "I told them I could not absorb a serious retaliatory raid, and they accepted the logic of this and promised there would never be one." The Palestinian nationalist organization
Fatah Fatah ( ; ), formally the Palestinian National Liberation Movement (), is a Palestinian nationalist and Arab socialist political party. It is the largest faction of the confederated multi-party Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) and ...
started organizing cross-border attacks against Israel in January 1965, often drawing Israeli reprisals on Jordan. One such reprisal was the Samu Incident, an attack launched by Israel on 13 November 1966 on the Jordanian-controlled West Bank town of
As-Samu As Samu' or es-Samu' () () is a town in the Hebron Governorate of the West Bank, Palestine, 12 kilometers south of the city of Hebron and 60 kilometers southwest of Jerusalem. The town had a population of 26,011 in 2017. As-Samu' is located o ...
after three Israeli soldiers were killed by a Fatah landmine. The assault inflicted heavy Arab casualties. Israeli writer
Avi Shlaim Avi Shlaim (, ; born 31 October 1945) is an Israeli and British historian of Iraqi Jewish descent. He is one of Israel's " New Historians", a group of Israeli scholars who put forward critical interpretations of the history of Zionism and Isr ...
argues that Israel's disproportionate retaliation exacted revenge on the wrong party, as Israeli leaders knew from their coordination with Hussein that he was doing everything he could to prevent such attacks. The incident drew fierce local criticism of Hussein amid feelings he had been betrayed by the Israelis; Hussein also suspected that Israel had changed its attitude towards Jordan and had intended to escalate matters in order to capture the West Bank.
Yitzhak Rabin Yitzhak Rabin (; , ; 1 March 1922 – 4 November 1995) was an Israeli politician, statesman and general. He was the prime minister of Israel, serving two terms in office, 1974–1977, and from 1992 until Assassination of Yitzhak Rabin, his ass ...
, the then
Israel Defense Forces The Israel Defense Forces (IDF; , ), alternatively referred to by the Hebrew-language acronym (), is the national military of the State of Israel. It consists of three service branches: the Israeli Ground Forces, the Israeli Air Force, and ...
chief of staff, later admitted the disproportionate reaction by Israel, and that the operation would have been better directed at Syria, which was supporting such attacks: "We had neither political nor military reasons to arrive at a confrontation with Jordan or to humiliate Hussein." The events at Samu triggered large-scale anti-Hashemite protests in the West Bank for what they perceived as Hussein's incompetency for defending them against Israel: rioters attacked government offices, chanted pro-Nasser slogans, and called on Hussein to have the same fate as
Nuri As-Said Nuri Pasha al-Said Al-Qaraghuli CH (; December 1888 – 15 July 1958) was an Iraqi politician and statesman who served eight terms as Prime Minister of Iraq. He served in various key cabinet and governmental positions in Iraq during its Briti ...
the Iraqi prime minister who had been killed and mutilated in 1958 along with the Iraqi royal family. Jordanians believed that after this incident, Israel would march on the West Bank whether or not Jordan joined the war. Perception of King Hussein's efforts to come to peaceful terms with Israel led to great dissatisfaction among some Arab leaders. President Nasser of Egypt denounced Hussein as an "imperialist lackey".BBC on this Day
Egypt and Jordan unite against Israel
Retrieved 8 October 2005.
In a meeting with American officials, Hussein, sometimes with tears in his eyes, said: "The growing split between the East Bank and the West Bank has ruined my dreams," and, "There is near despair in the army and the army no longer has confidence in me." Hussein travelled to Cairo on 30 May 1967 and hastily signed an Egyptian-Jordanian mutual defense treaty, returning home to cheering crowds. Shlaim argues that Hussein had possessed options, but had made two mistakes: the first was in putting the Jordanian army under Egyptian command; the second was in allowing the entry of Iraqi troops into Jordan, which raised Israeli suspicions against Jordan. Egyptian general
Abdul Munim Riad Abdul Munim Riad ( 22 October 1919 – 9 March 1969) was an Egyptian military officer and the Chief of Staff of the Armed Forces (Egypt), Chief of Staff of the Egyptian Armed Forces from 1967 to 1969. He commanded the Jordanian Armed Forces during ...
arrived in Jordan to command its army pursuant to the pact signed with Egypt.


Six-Day War

On 5 June 1967 the
Six-Day War The Six-Day War, also known as the June War, 1967 Arab–Israeli War or Third Arab–Israeli War, was fought between Israel and a coalition of Arab world, Arab states, primarily United Arab Republic, Egypt, Syria, and Jordan from 5 to 10June ...
began after an Israeli strike wiped out Egypt's Air Force. The Egyptian army commander in Cairo transmitted to General Riad that the Israeli strike had failed, and that Israel's Air Force was almost wiped out. Based on the misleading information from Cairo, Riad ordered the Jordanian army to take offensive positions and attack Israeli targets around
Jerusalem Jerusalem is a city in the Southern Levant, on a plateau in the Judaean Mountains between the Mediterranean Sea, Mediterranean and the Dead Sea. It is one of the List of oldest continuously inhabited cities, oldest cities in the world, and ...
. Jordanian Hawker Hunters made sorties but were destroyed by Israel when they went to refuel; Syria's and Iraq's air forces followed. Israel's air superiority on the first day of war proved decisive. Two Israeli jets attempted to assassinate Hussein; one was shot down by anti-aircraft artillery, and the other shot directly at Hussein's office in the royal palace. Hussein was not there, the
CIA The Central Intelligence Agency (CIA; ) is a civilian foreign intelligence service of the federal government of the United States tasked with advancing national security through collecting and analyzing intelligence from around the world and ...
station chief in Amman Jack O'Connell relayed a message threatening the Israelis, and the attempts stopped. The Jordanians had prepared a war strategy, but the Egyptian commander insisted to build his strategy based on the misleading information from Egypt. By 7 June fighting led the Jordanians to withdraw from the West Bank, and Jerusalem's Old City and the
Dome of the Rock The Dome of the Rock () is an Islamic shrine at the center of the Al-Aqsa mosque compound on the Temple Mount in the Old City (Jerusalem), Old City of Jerusalem. It is the world's oldest surviving work of Islamic architecture, the List_of_the_ol ...
were abandoned after desperate fighting. Israel blew up the bridges between the two banks to consolidate its control. Jordan suffered a severe setback with the loss of the West Bank, which contributed 40% to Jordan's GDP in the tourism, industrial, and agricultural sectors. Around 200,000 Palestinian refugees fled to Jordan, destabilizing Jordan's demographics. The loss of Jerusalem was critical to Jordan, and specifically for Hussein who held the Hashemite custodianship of Muslim and Christian holy sites in Jerusalem. Al-Aqsa mosque is the third holiest site in Islam, believed to be where
Muhammad Muhammad (8 June 632 CE) was an Arab religious and political leader and the founder of Islam. Muhammad in Islam, According to Islam, he was a prophet who was divinely inspired to preach and confirm the tawhid, monotheistic teachings of A ...
ascended to heaven. By 11 June Israel had decisively won the war by capturing the West Bank from Jordan, Gaza and the Sinai from Egypt, and the
Golan Heights The Golan Heights, or simply the Golan, is a basaltic plateau at the southwest corner of Syria. It is bordered by the Yarmouk River in the south, the Sea of Galilee and Hula Valley in the west, the Anti-Lebanon mountains with Mount Hermon in t ...
from Syria. Nasser and Hussein, recognizing their defeat, sought to work together towards a more moderate stance. On 22 November 1967 the
United Nations Security Council The United Nations Security Council (UNSC) is one of the six principal organs of the United Nations (UN) and is charged with ensuring international peace and security, recommending the admission of new UN members to the General Assembly, an ...
unanimously approved
resolution 242 United Nations Security Council Resolution 242 (S/RES/242) was adopted unanimously by the UN Security Council on November 22, 1967, in the aftermath of the Six-Day War. It was adopted under Chapter VI of the United Nations Charter, Chapter VI of ...
, which became one of Jordan's foreign policy cornerstones. It denounced acquisition of territory by force and called on Israel to withdraw from territories occupied in the 1967 war. Israel rejected the resolution. Hussein restarted talks with Israeli representatives throughout 1968 and 1969, but the talks went nowhereShlaim claims the Israelis stalled and that Hussein refused to cede any West Bank territory.


Black September

After Jordan lost control of the West Bank in 1967,
Palestinian Palestinians () are an Arab ethnonational group native to the Levantine region of Palestine. *: "Palestine was part of the first wave of conquest following Muhammad's death in 632 CE; Jerusalem fell to the Caliph Umar in 638. The indigenous p ...
fighters known as "
fedayeen Fedayeen ( ''fidāʻiyyūn'' "self-sacrificers") is an Arabic language, Arabic term used to refer to various military groups willing to sacrifice themselves for a larger campaign. Etymology "Fidayun" is the plural of "fidayi" ( ''fidāʻiyy'' ...
", meaning self-sacrificers, moved their bases to Jordan and stepped up their attacks on Israel. One Israeli retaliation on a PLO camp based in
Karameh Al-Karameh (), or simply Karameh, is a town in west-central Jordan, near the Allenby Bridge which spans the Jordan River. Karameh sits on the eastern bank of the river, along the border between Jordan, Israel, as well as the Israeli-administere ...
, a Jordanian town along the border with the West Bank, developed into a full-scale battle. It is believed that Israel had wanted to punish Jordan for its perceived support for the PLO. After failing to capture
Yasser Arafat Yasser Arafat (4 or 24 August 1929 – 11 November 2004), also popularly known by his Kunya (Arabic), kunya Abu Ammar, was a Palestinian political leader. He was chairman of the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) from 1969 to 2004, Presid ...
, the PLO leader, Israeli forces withdrew or were repulsed, but not before destroying the Karameh camp and sustaining relatively high casualties. The perceived joint Jordanian-Palestinian victory in the 1968
Battle of Karameh The Battle of Karameh () was a 15-hour military engagement between Israel and the combined forces of Jordan and the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) in the Jordanian border town of Karameh during the War of Attrition on 21 March 1968. ...
led to an upsurge of support in the Arab World for Palestinian fighters in Jordan. The PLO in Jordan grew in strength, and by the beginning of 1970 the fedayeen groups started to openly call for the overthrow of the
Hashemite The Hashemites (), also House of Hashim, are the Dynasty, royal family of Jordan, which they have ruled since 1921, and were the royal family of the kingdoms of Kingdom of Hejaz, Hejaz (1916–1925), Arab Kingdom of Syria, Syria (1920), and Kingd ...
monarchy. Acting as a
state within a state Deep state is a term used for (real or imagined) potential, unauthorized and often secret networks of power operating independently of a state's political leadership in pursuit of their own agendas and goals. Although the term originated in Turke ...
, the fedayeen disregarded local laws and regulations, and even attempted to assassinate King Hussein twice, leading to violent confrontations between them and the Jordanian army. Hussein wanted to oust the fedayeen from the country, but hesitated to strike because he did not want his enemies to use it against him by equating Palestinian fighters with civilians. PLO actions in Jordan culminated in the
Dawson's Field hijackings In September 1970, members of the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP) hijacked four airliners bound for New York City and one for London. Three aircraft were forced to land at Dawson's Field, a remote desert airstrip near Zarqa ...
incident on 10 September 1970, in which the fedayeen hijacked three civilian aircraft and forced their landing in Zarqa, taking foreign nationals as hostages, and later bombing the planes in front of the international press. Hussein saw this as the last straw, and ordered the army to move. On 17 September the Jordanian army surrounded cities that had a PLO presence, including Amman and
Irbid Irbid (), known in ancient times as Arabella or Arbela (Άρβηλα in Ancient Greek language, Ancient Greek), is the capital and largest city of Irbid Governorate. It has the second-largest metropolitan population in Jordan after Amman, with a ...
, and began shelling the fedayeen, who had established themselves in Palestinian refugee camps. The next day, a force from Syria with PLO markings started advancing towards Irbid, which the fedayeen declared a "liberated" city. On 22 September, the Syrians withdrew after the Jordanian army launched an air-ground offensive that inflicted heavy Syrian losses, and after Israeli Air Force jets flew over Syrian units in a symbolic show of support of Hussein, but did not engage. An agreement brokered by Egyptian president Nasser between Arafat and Hussein led to an end to the fighting on 27 September. Nasser died the following day of a heart attack. On 13 October Hussein signed an agreement with Arafat to regulate the fedayeen's presence, but the Jordanian army attacked again in January 1971. The fedayeen were driven out of Jordanian cities one by one until 2,000 fedayeen surrendered after being encircled in a forest near Ajloun on 17 July, marking the end of the conflict. Jordan allowed the fedayeen to leave for Lebanon through Syria, an event that led to the
Lebanese Civil War The Lebanese Civil War ( ) was a multifaceted armed conflict that took place from 1975 to 1990. It resulted in an estimated 150,000 fatalities and led to the exodus of almost one million people from Lebanon. The religious diversity of the ...
in 1975. The
Black September Organization The Black September Organization (BSO; ) was a Palestinians, Palestinian militant organization, which was founded in September 1970. Besides other actions, the group was responsible for the Assassination of Wasfi Al-Tal, assassination of the Jo ...
was founded the same year, named after the conflict. The organization claimed responsibility for the assassination of Jordanian prime minister
Wasfi Tal Wasfi Tal (; also known as Wasfi Tell; 1920 – 28 November 1971) was a Jordanian politician, statesman and military officer. He served as the 15th Prime Minister of Jordan for three separate terms, 1962–63, 1965–67 and 1970 until his assass ...
in 1971, and the highly publicized 1972 Munich massacre against Israeli athletes. In a speech to the Jordanian parliament on 15 March 1972, Hussein announced his " United Arab Kingdom" plan. Unlike the
unitary state A unitary state is a (Sovereign state, sovereign) State (polity), state governed as a single entity in which the central government is the supreme authority. The central government may create or abolish administrative divisions (sub-national or ...
that had existed between the West Bank and Jordan during Jordan's annexation of the West Bank (1950–1967), this plan envisaged two federal entities on each bank of the Jordan River. According to the proposal, the two districts of the federation would be autonomous, excluding the military and the foreign and security affairs that would be determined by an Amman central government. But the implementation of the plan was to be conditional upon achieving a peace agreement between Israel and Jordan. Ultimately, Hussein's proposal was ruled out after it was vehemently rejected by Israel, the PLO, and several Arab states.


Yom Kippur War

After the 1967 war,
Gunnar Jarring Gunnar Valfrid Jarring (12 October 1907 – 29 May 2002) was a Swedish diplomat and Turkologist. Early life Jarring was born on 12 October 1907 in Brunnby, Malmöhus County, Sweden, the son of Gottfrid Jönsson, a farmer, and his wife Betty ( ...
was appointed by the UN as a
special envoy Diplomatic rank is a system of professional and social rank used in the world of diplomacy and international relations. A diplomat's rank determines many ceremonial details, such as the order of precedence at official processions, table seating ...
for the Middle East peace process, leading the
Jarring Mission The Jarring Mission refers to efforts undertaken by Gunnar Jarring to achieve a peaceful settlement of the conflict between Israel and its Arab neighbors after the Six-Day War in 1967. History Jarring was appointed on 23 November 1967 by UN Secr ...
. The talks between Arab countries and Israel resulted in a deadlock.The Jarring initiative and the response
" ''Israel's Foreign Relations'', Selected Documents, vols.1–2, 1947–1974. Retrieved 9 June 2005.
The stalemate led to renewed fears of another war between Arab countries and Israel. Worried that Jordan would be dragged into another war unprepared, Hussein sent
Zaid Al-Rifai Zaid al-Rifai (; 27 November 1936 – 12 August 2024) was a Jordanian politician who served as the 22nd Prime Minister of Jordan, prime minister of Jordan, holding office from May 1973 to July 1976 and again from April 1984 to April 1989. His s ...
to Egyptian president
Anwar Sadat Muhammad Anwar es-Sadat (25 December 1918 – 6 October 1981) was an Egyptian politician and military officer who served as the third president of Egypt, from 15 October 1970 until Assassination of Anwar Sadat, his assassination by fundame ...
in December 1972 to inquire. Sadat informed Al-Rifai that he had been planning a limited incursion in the Sinai that would allow some political manoeuvring. Sadat then invited Al-Rifai and Hussein to a summit on 10 September 1973 with him and
Hafez al-Assad Hafez al-Assad (6 October 193010 June 2000) was a Syrian politician and military officer who was the president of Syria from 1971 until Death and state funeral of Hafez al-Assad, his death in 2000. He was previously the Prime Minister of Syria ...
, who had become president of Syria. The summit ended with a restoration of ties between Jordan, Egypt, and Syria. Sadat disclosed to Assad and Hussein his intention to initiate military action. Hussein refused Sadat's request to allow the fedayeen's return to Jordan but agreed that in case of a military operation, Jordanian troops would play a limited defensive role in assisting the Syrians in the Golan Heights. Egypt and Syria launched the
Yom Kippur War The Yom Kippur War, also known as the Ramadan War, the October War, the 1973 Arab–Israeli War, or the Fourth Arab–Israeli War, was fought from 6 to 25 October 1973 between Israel and a coalition of Arab world, Arab states led by Egypt and S ...
against Israel in the Sinai and in the Golan Heights on 6 October 1973 without Hussein's knowledge. Between 10 September and 6 October, Hussein secretly met with Israeli prime minister
Golda Meir Golda Meir (; 3 May 1898 – 8 December 1978) was the prime minister of Israel, serving from 1969 to 1974. She was Israel's first and only female head of government. Born into a Jewish family in Kyiv, Kiev, Russian Empire (present-day Ukraine) ...
in
Tel Aviv Tel Aviv-Yafo ( or , ; ), sometimes rendered as Tel Aviv-Jaffa, and usually referred to as just Tel Aviv, is the most populous city in the Gush Dan metropolitan area of Israel. Located on the Israeli Mediterranean coastline and with a popula ...
on 25 September. Israeli leaks of the meeting led to rumors in the Arab World that Hussein had tipped off Meir about Arab intentions. Hussein only discussed with Meir what both already knew, that the Syrian army was on alert. On 13 October Jordan joined the war and sent the 40thbrigade to assist the Syrians in the Golan Heights. Some see it as ironic that it was the same brigade that had been sent to deter the Syrian invasion during Black September in 1970. Subsequent peace talks with Israel collapsed; while Jordan wanted a complete Israeli withdrawal from the West Bank, Israel preferred to retain control but with Jordanian administration. In the 1974 Arab League summit held in Morocco on 26 October, a Fatah plot to assassinate Hussein upon his arrival was uncovered by the Moroccan authorities. The plot did not deter Hussein from joining the summit, but at the end Jordan had to join all the Arab countries in recognizing the PLO as "the sole representative of the Palestinian people," a diplomatic defeat for Hussein. The relationship between Jordan and the United States deteriorated when Jordan refused to join the
Camp David Accords The Camp David Accords were a pair of political agreements signed by Egyptian president Anwar Sadat and Israeli prime minister Menachem Begin on 17 September 1978, following twelve days of secret negotiations at Camp David, the country retre ...
. The Accords formed the peace treaty between Egypt and Israel, and allowed the withdrawal of Israel from the Sinai. In 1978 Hussein went to
Baghdad Baghdad ( or ; , ) is the capital and List of largest cities of Iraq, largest city of Iraq, located along the Tigris in the central part of the country. With a population exceeding 7 million, it ranks among the List of largest cities in the A ...
for the first time since 1958; there, he met Iraqi politician
Saddam Hussein Saddam Hussein (28 April 1937 – 30 December 2006) was an Iraqi politician and revolutionary who served as the fifth president of Iraq from 1979 until Saddam Hussein statue destruction, his overthrow in 2003 during the 2003 invasion of Ira ...
. When Saddam became president of Iraq in 1979, Hussein supported Saddam's
Iran–Iraq War The Iran–Iraq War, also known as the First Gulf War, was an armed conflict between Iran and Iraq that lasted from September 1980 to August 1988. Active hostilities began with the Iraqi invasion of Iran and lasted for nearly eight years, unti ...
that stretched from 1980 to 1988. The relationship grew as Saddam provided Jordan with subsidized oil, and Jordan allowed Iraq to use the
Port of Aqaba The Port of Aqaba is the only port in Jordan, and is owned by Aqaba Development Corporation (ADC) and has 12 terminals operated by five operators: the Aqaba Company for port management and operation; Aqaba Container Terminal; Industrial Port Co ...
for its exports.


Involvement in peace initiatives

When the PLO moved to Lebanon from Jordan after 1970, repeated attacks and counter-attacks occurred in southern Lebanon between the PLO and Israel. Two major Israeli incursions into Lebanon occurred in
1978 Events January * January 1 – Air India Flight 855, a Boeing 747 passenger jet, crashes off the coast of Bombay, killing 213. * January 5 – Bülent Ecevit, of Republican People's Party, CHP, forms the new government of Turkey (42nd ...
, and the other in
1982 Events January * January 1 – In Malaysia and Singapore, clocks are adjusted to the same time zone, UTC+8 (GMT+8.00). * January 13 – Air Florida Flight 90 crashes shortly after takeoff into the 14th Street Bridge in Washington, D.C. ...
, the latter conflict troubled Hussein as the IDF had laid siege to
Beirut Beirut ( ; ) is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Lebanon. , Greater Beirut has a population of 2.5 million, just under half of Lebanon's population, which makes it the List of largest cities in the Levant region by populatio ...
. The PLO was to be expelled from Lebanon, and
Ariel Sharon Ariel Sharon ( ; also known by his diminutive Arik, ; 26 February 192811 January 2014) was an Israeli general and politician who served as the prime minister of Israel from March 2001 until April 2006. Born in Kfar Malal in Mandatory Palestin ...
, the Israeli Defense minister, suggested they be moved to Jordan where the monarchy would be toppled and Jordan would serve as an "alternative Palestinian homeland". Sharon boasted: "One speech by me will make King Hussein realize that the time has come to pack his bags." However, Arafat rejected Sharon's suggestion, and the fedayeen were transported to Tunisia under American cover. In 1983 American president
Ronald Reagan Ronald Wilson Reagan (February 6, 1911 – June 5, 2004) was an American politician and actor who served as the 40th president of the United States from 1981 to 1989. He was a member of the Republican Party (United States), Republican Party a ...
suggested a peace plan that became known as the Reagan plan, similar to Hussein's 1972 federation plan. Hussein and Arafat both agreed to the plan on 1 April, but the PLO's executive office rejected it. A year and a half later, a renewed effort by Hussein to jump start the peace process culminated in the establishment of a Jordan–PLO accord that sought a peaceful resolution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, an unprecedented milestone for the PLO and a Jordanian diplomatic victory. The accord was opposed by Israel and garnered no international support from either the United States or the Soviet Union. Around the same time, Hussein met Israel prime minister
Shimon Peres Shimon Peres ( ; ; born Szymon Perski, ; 2 August 1923 – 28 September 2016) was an Israeli politician and statesman who served as the prime minister of Israel from 1984 to 1986 and from 1995 to 1996 and as the president of Israel from 2007 t ...
on 19 July 1985 in the United Kingdom, where Peres assented to the accord, but later the rest of his government opposed it due to the PLO's involvement. Subsequent talks between the PLO and Jordan collapsed after the PLO refused to make concessions; in a speech Hussein announced that "after two long attempts, I and the government of Jordan hereby announce that we are unable to continue to coordinate politically with the PLO leadership until such time as their word becomes their bond, characterized by commitment, credibility and constancy." Jordan started a crackdown on the PLO by closing their offices in Amman after the Israeli minister of defense, Yitzhak Rabin, requested it from Hussein in a secret meeting. Jordan announced a $1.3billion five-year development plan for the West Bank, in a bid to enhance its image in the West Bank residents at the expense of the PLO. Around the same time, Hussein became troubled after he heard that Israel had been selling American weapons to Iran, thereby lengthening the conflict between Iraq and Iran, both supporters of the PLO. The relationship between Hussein and Saddam became very closeHussein visited Baghdad 61 times between 1980 and 1990, and Saddam used Hussein to relay messages to several countries, including the US and Britain. In June 1982, after Iran's victory seemed imminent, Hussein personally carried to Saddam sensitive photographic intelligence forwarded to him by the US. In return, Saddam provided incentives for Jordanian exports to Iraq, which accounted for a quarter of all Jordan's exports, valued at $212.3million in 1989. Iraqi aid helped Jordan's finances; Hussein had felt it humiliating to keep asking Gulf countries for assistance. Hussein made a little-known attempt to heal the rift between the two
Ba'ath Ba'athism, also spelled Baathism, is an Arab nationalist ideology which advocates the establishment of a unified Arab state through the rule of a Ba'athist vanguard party operating under a revolutionary socialist framework. The ideology is ...
regimes of Iraq and Syria in April 1986. The meeting between Hafez al-Assad and Saddam Hussein occurred at an airbase in Al-Jafr in the eastern Jordanian desert. The talks lasted for a day, after which no progress was made. Saddam was angry at Al-Assad for supporting Iran against an Arab country, Iraq, and Al-Assad was adamant about establishing a union between Iraq and Syria, which Saddam rejected. On 11 April 1987, after
Yitzhak Shamir Yitzhak Shamir (, ; born Yitzhak Yezernitsky; October 22, 1915 – June 30, 2012) was an Israeli politician and the seventh prime minister of Israel, serving two terms (1983–1984, 1986–1992). Before the establishment of the State of Israel, ...
became prime minister of Israel, Hussein engaged in direct talks with Shamir's foreign minister, Peres, in London. After reaching an agreement between Hussein and Peres on establishing an international peace conference, Shamir and the rest of the ministers in his cabinet rejected the proposal. On 8 November 1987 Jordan hosted an Arab League summit; Hussein enjoyed good relations with rival Arab blocs, and he acted as conciliatory intermediate. He helped mobilize Arab support for Iraq against Iran, and for Jordan's peace efforts, and helped to end the decade-long Arab boycott of Egypta boycott that began after it unilaterally signed a peace treaty with Israel in 1979. Hussein described the summit as one of the best moments in his life.


Disengagement from West Bank

On 9 December 1987 an Israeli truck driver ran over four Palestinians in a Gaza refugee camp, sparking unrest that spread to violent demonstrations in the West Bank. What began as an uprising to achieve Palestinian independence against the Israeli occupation turned into an upsurge of support for the PLO, which had orchestrated the uprising, and consequently diminished Jordanian influence in the West Bank. Jordanian policy on the West Bank had to be reconsidered following renewed fears that Israel would revive its proposal for Jordan to become an "alternative Palestinian homeland". US Secretary of State George P. Shultz set up a peace process that became known as the Schulz Initiative. It called for Jordan rather than the PLO to represent the Palestinians; however, when Schultz contacted Hussein about the plan, he reversed his position and told him it was a matter for the PLO to decide. The orchestrators of the Intifada were the
Unified National Leadership of the Uprising The Unified National Leadership of the Uprising (UNLU; ) was a coalition of local Palestinian leadership during the First Intifada. By the late 1980s, the central Palestine Liberation Organisation (PLO) leadership had largely been exiled, impri ...
, which issued its 10th communiqué on 11 March 1988, urging its followers to "intensify the mass pressure against the sraeloccupation army and the settlers and against collaborators and personnel of the Jordanian regime." West Bank Palestinians deviation from the Jordanian state highlighted the need for a revision in Jordan's policy, and
Jordanian nationalists Jordanian may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to Jordan, a country in the Near East * Jordanian culture * Jordanian people, see Demographics of Jordan * Jordanian cuisine * Jordanian Arabic * Royal Jordanian, an airline See also

...
began to argue that Jordan would be better off without the Palestinians and without the West Bank. Adnan Abu Oudeh, a Palestinian descendant who was Hussein's political advisor, Prime Minister
Zaid Al-Rifai Zaid al-Rifai (; 27 November 1936 – 12 August 2024) was a Jordanian politician who served as the 22nd Prime Minister of Jordan, prime minister of Jordan, holding office from May 1973 to July 1976 and again from April 1984 to April 1989. His s ...
, army chief of staff
Zaid ibn Shaker Zaid ibn Shaker, GBE, CVO (4 September 1934 – 30 August 2002) () was a Jordanian military officer and politician who served as the commander-in-chief of the Jordanian military for more than twelve years and the 27th Prime Minister of Jordan ...
,
Royal Court A royal court, often called simply a court when the royal context is clear, is an extended royal household in a monarchy, including all those who regularly attend on a monarch, or another central figure. Hence, the word ''court'' may also be app ...
chief Marwan Kasim, and mukhabarat director Tariq Alaeddin, helped the King prepare West Bank disengagement plans. The Jordanian Ministry of Occupied Territories Affairs was abolished on 1 July 1988, its responsibilities taken over by the Palestinian Affairs Department. On 28 July Jordan terminated the West Bank development plan. Two days later a royal decree dissolved the
House of Representatives House of Representatives is the name of legislative bodies in many countries and sub-national entities. In many countries, the House of Representatives is the lower house of a bicameral legislature, with the corresponding upper house often ...
, thereby removing West Bank representation in the Parliament. In a televised speech on 1 August, Hussein announced the "severing of Jordan's legal and administrative ties with the West Bank," essentially surrendering claims of sovereignty over the West Bank. The move revoked the Jordanian citizenship of Palestinians in the West Bank (who had obtained it since Jordan annexed the territory in 1950), but not that of Palestinians residing in Jordan. Nevertheless, the Hashemite custodianship over the Muslim and Christian holy sites in Jerusalem was retained. Israeli politicians were stunned, thinking it was a political manoeuvre so that the Palestinians could show support for Hussein, but later realized that it represented a shift in Jordan's policy after Hussein asked his West Bank supporters not to issue petitions demanding that he relent. In a meeting in November 1988 the PLO accepted all United Nations resolutions and agreed to recognize Israel.


1989 riots

Jordan's disengagement from the West Bank led to a slowing of the Jordanian economy. The
Jordanian dinar The Jordanian dinar (; ISO 4217, code: JOD; unofficially abbreviated as JD) has been the currency of Jordan since 1950. The dinar is divided into 100 qirsh (also called piastres) or 1000 fils (currency), fulus. Fils are effectively obsolete; howe ...
lost a third of its value in 1988, and Jordan's foreign debt reached a figure double that of its
gross national product The gross national income (GNI), previously known as gross national product (GNP), is the total amount of factor incomes earned by the residents of a country. It is equal to gross domestic product (GDP), plus factor incomes received from n ...
(GNP). Jordan introduced
austerity In economic policy, austerity is a set of Political economy, political-economic policies that aim to reduce government budget deficits through Government spending, spending cuts, tax increases, or a combination of both. There are three prim ...
measures to combat the economic crisis. On 16 April 1989 the government increased prices of gasoline, licensing fees, alcoholic beverages, and cigarettes, between 15% and 50%, in a bid to increase revenues in accordance with an agreement with the
International Monetary Fund The International Monetary Fund (IMF) is a major financial agency of the United Nations, and an international financial institution funded by 191 member countries, with headquarters in Washington, D.C. It is regarded as the global lender of las ...
(IMF). The IMF agreement was to enable Jordan to reschedule its $6billion debt, and obtain loans totaling $275million over 18months. On 18 April riots in
Ma'an Ma'an () is a city in southern Jordan, southwest of the capital Amman. It serves as the capital of the Ma'an Governorate. Its population was approximately 41,055 in 2015. Civilizations with the name of Ma'an have existed at least since the Nab ...
spread to other southern towns such as
Al-Karak Al-Karak (), in English sources often simply Karak, is a city in Jordan known for its medieval castle, the Kerak Castle. The castle is one of the three largest castles in the region, the other two being in Syria. Al-Karak is the capital city of ...
and Tafila, where the ''
New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...
'' reported that around 4,000 people gathered in the streets and clashed with the
police The police are Law enforcement organization, a constituted body of Law enforcement officer, people empowered by a State (polity), state with the aim of Law enforcement, enforcing the law and protecting the Public order policing, public order ...
, resulting in six protesters killed and 42 injured, and two policemen killed and 47 injured. Despite the fact that the protests were triggered by a troubling economic situation, the crowds' demands became political. Protesters accused Zaid Al-Rifai's government of rampant corruption and demanded that the martial law in place since 1957 be lifted and
parliamentary elections A general election is an electoral process to choose most or all members of a governing body at the same time. They are distinct from by-elections, which fill individual seats that have become vacant between general elections. General elections ...
be resumed. The last parliamentary election had taken place in 1967, just before Jordan lost the West Bank, and when the parliament's tenure ended in 1971, no elections could be held due to the fact that the West Bank was under Israeli occupation, but the West Bank's status became irrelevant after Jordan's disengagement in 1988. Hussein relented to the demands by dismissing Al-Rifai, and appointed
Zaid ibn Shaker Zaid ibn Shaker, GBE, CVO (4 September 1934 – 30 August 2002) () was a Jordanian military officer and politician who served as the commander-in-chief of the Jordanian military for more than twelve years and the 27th Prime Minister of Jordan ...
to form a new government. In 1986 a new electoral law was passed, which allowed the reintroduction of parliamentary elections to proceed smoothly. The cabinet passed amendments to the electoral law that removed articles dealing with West Bank representation. In May 1989, just before the elections, Hussein announced his intention to appoint a 60-person royal commission to draft a reformist document named the National Charter. The National Charter sought to set a timetable for democratization acts. Although most members of the commission were regime loyalists, it included a number of opposition figures and dissidents.
Parliamentary elections A general election is an electoral process to choose most or all members of a governing body at the same time. They are distinct from by-elections, which fill individual seats that have become vacant between general elections. General elections ...
were held on 8 November 1989, the first in 22 years.
Dieter Nohlen Dieter Nohlen (born 6 November 1939) is a German academic and political scientist. He currently holds the position of Emeritus Professor of Political Science in the Faculty of Economic and Social Sciences of the University of Heidelberg. An ex ...
, Florian Grotz & Christof Hartmann (2001) ''Elections in Asia: A data handbook, Volume I'', p.148
The National Charter was drafted and ratified by parliament in 1991.


Gulf War

A UN-brokered ceasefire became active in July 1988, ending the Iran-Iraq war. Hussein had advised Saddam after 1988 to polish his image in the West by visiting other countries, and by appearing at the United Nations for a speech, but to no avail. The Iraqi-Jordanian relationship developed into the
Arab Cooperation Council The Arab Cooperation Council (ACC) was founded on 16 February 1989 by North Yemen, Iraq, Jordan, and Egypt. The ACC was created partly in response to the four countries being left out of the Gulf Cooperation Council ( GCC), partly out of a des ...
(ACC), which also included
Egypt Egypt ( , ), officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a country spanning the Northeast Africa, northeast corner of Africa and Western Asia, southwest corner of Asia via the Sinai Peninsula. It is bordered by the Mediterranean Sea to northe ...
and
North Yemen North Yemen () is a term used to describe the Kingdom of Yemen (1918-1962), the Yemen Arab Republic (1962-1990), and the regimes that preceded them and exercised sovereignty over that region of Yemen. Its capital was Sanaa from 1918 to 1948 an ...
, on 16 February 1989, serving as a counter to the
Gulf Cooperation Council The Cooperation Council for the Arab States of the Gulf (), also known as the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC; ), is a Regional integration, regional, intergovernmental organization, intergovernmental, political, and economic union comprising Ba ...
. Saddam's
invasion of Kuwait The Iraqi invasion of Kuwait, codenamed Project 17, began on 2 August 1990 and marked the beginning of the Gulf War. After defeating the Kuwait, State of Kuwait on 4 August 1990, Ba'athist Iraq, Iraq went on to militarily occupy the country fo ...
on 2 August 1990 led six months later to international intervention to expel Iraqi forces from Kuwait in what became known as the
Gulf War , combatant2 = , commander1 = , commander2 = , strength1 = Over 950,000 soldiers3,113 tanks1,800 aircraft2,200 artillery systems , page = https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/GAOREPORTS-PEMD-96- ...
. Iraq's invasion of Kuwait caught Hussein by surprise; he was the ACC chairman at that time, and a personal friend of Saddam's. After informing the American president
George H. W. Bush George Herbert Walker BushBefore the outcome of the 2000 United States presidential election, he was usually referred to simply as "George Bush" but became more commonly known as "George H. W. Bush", "Bush Senior," "Bush 41," and even "Bush th ...
of his intention to travel to Baghdad to contain the situation, Hussein travelled to Baghdad on 3 August for a meeting with Saddam; at the meeting, the latter announced his intention to withdraw Iraqi troops from Kuwait only if Arab governments refrained from issuing statements of condemnation, and no foreign troops were involved. On Hussein's way back from Baghdad, Egypt issued a condemnation of the Iraqi invasion. To Hussein's dismay, Egyptian president Husni Mubarak refused to reverse his position and called for Iraq's unconditional withdrawal from Kuwait. An Arab League summit held in Cairo issued a condemnation of Iraq with a fourteen-vote majority, despite calls by Jordan's foreign minister Marwan Al-Kasim that this move would hinder Hussein's efforts to reach a peaceful resolution. Both
Kuwait Kuwait, officially the State of Kuwait, is a country in West Asia and the geopolitical region known as the Middle East. It is situated in the northern edge of the Arabian Peninsula at the head of the Persian Gulf, bordering Iraq to Iraq–Kuwait ...
and
Saudi Arabia Saudi Arabia, officially the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA), is a country in West Asia. Located in the centre of the Middle East, it covers the bulk of the Arabian Peninsula and has a land area of about , making it the List of Asian countries ...
viewed Hussein with suspicionthey distrusted him and believed he was planning to obtain a share of Kuwait's wealth. On 6 August American troops arrived at the Kuwait-Saudi Arabian border, Saddam's conditions were ignored, and Hussein's role as mediator was undermined. Saddam then announced that his invasion had become "irreversible", and on 8 August he annexed Kuwait. Jordan, along with the international community, refused to recognize the Iraqi-installed regime in Kuwait. The United States, seeing Jordan's neutrality as siding with Saddam, cut its aid to Jordanaid on which Jordan depended; Gulf countries soon followed. Hussein's position in the international community was severely affected, so severe that he privately discussed his intention to
abdicate Abdication is the act of formally relinquishing monarchical authority. Abdications have played various roles in the succession procedures of monarchies. While some cultures have viewed abdication as an extreme abandonment of duty, in other soci ...
. Jordan's public opinion was overwhelmingly against international intervention, and against Gulf rulers who were perceived to be greedy and corrupt. Hussein's popularity among Jordanians reached its zenith, and anti-Western demonstrations filled the streets. But Western pundits viewed Hussein's actions as impulsive and emotional, claiming that he could have dampened Jordanian public support for Iraq through better leadership. Hussein's brother, Crown Prince Hassan, also disagreed with Hussein, but the King refused to recognize Saddam's wrongdoings. In late August and early September Hussein visited twelve Western and Arab capitals in an effort to promote a peaceful resolution. He finished his tour by flying directly to
Baghdad Baghdad ( or ; , ) is the capital and List of largest cities of Iraq, largest city of Iraq, located along the Tigris in the central part of the country. With a population exceeding 7 million, it ranks among the List of largest cities in the A ...
to meet Saddam, where he warned: "Make a brave decision and withdraw your forces; if you don't, you will be forced out." Saddam was adamant but agreed to Hussein's request to release Western nationals who were being held as hostages. Threats of a war between Israel and Iraq were rising, and in December 1990 Hussein relayed a message to Saddam saying that Jordan would not tolerate any violations of its territory. Jordan dispatched an armored division to its borders with Iraq, and Hussein's eldest son Abdullah was in charge of a
Cobra COBRA or Cobra, often stylized as CoBrA, was a European avant-garde art group active from 1948 to 1951. The name was coined in 1948 by Christian Dotremont from the initials of the members' home countries' capital cities: Copenhagen (Co), Brussels ...
helicopter squadron. Jordan also concentrated its forces near its border with Israel. Adding to Jordan's deteriorating situation was the arrival of 400,000 Palestinian refugees from Kuwait, who had all been working there. By 28 February 1991 the international coalition had successfully cleared Iraqi forces from Kuwait.


Peace with Israel

Jordan participated in the imposition of economic sanctions against Iraq even though the sanctions would severely affect its economy. The effects of the Gulf War, the sanctions on Iraq, and the flow of refugees to Jordan were estimated by a UN report to be $1.5billion out of a gross domestic product (GDP) of $4.2billion in 1990, and $3.6billion out of a GDP of $4.7billion in 1991. The end of the Gulf War coincided with the end of the Cold War. This allowed the United States to play a more active role in solving the decades-long Israeli-Palestinian conflict. The Bush administration were still angry at Hussein for the Gulf War events but realized they needed Jordan's participation in any peace process. Hussein agreed to an American request to join an international peace conference so that Jordan could start repairing its relationship with the United States and end its political isolation. Hussein's moves towards democratization in 1989 and his stance during the 1990 Gulf War had won him considerable popularity across Jordan's political spectrum. But when Hussein replaced his conservative prime minister,
Mudar Badran Mudar Mohammad Ayesh Badran (‎; 18 January 1934 – 22 April 2023) was a Jordanian politician, government minister, and industrialist. He served as the 23rd Prime Minister of Jordan on three occasions from 1976 to 1979, then again from 1980 ...
, with liberal Palestinian
Taher Al-Masri Taher Nashat al-Masri (; born March 5, 1942) is a Jordanian politician who served as the 28th Prime Minister of Jordan from 19 June 1991 to 21 November 1991. He opposed the invasion of Iraq but reportedly wanted the Americans to stay in Iraq and ...
, who was in favor of peace negotiations with Israel, the
Muslim Brotherhood The Society of the Muslim Brothers ('' ''), better known as the Muslim Brotherhood ( ', is a transnational Sunni Islamist organization founded in Egypt by Islamic scholar, Imam and schoolteacher Hassan al-Banna in 1928. Al-Banna's teachings s ...
Jordan's main opposition group, who at that time occupied 22 out of 80 seats in the
House of Representatives House of Representatives is the name of legislative bodies in many countries and sub-national entities. In many countries, the House of Representatives is the lower house of a bicameral legislature, with the corresponding upper house often ...
, and whose members and support came mostly from Palestinians in the countryvehemently rejected the new prime minister by voting against him during the
vote of confidence A motion or vote of no confidence (or the inverse, a motion or vote of confidence) is a motion and corresponding vote thereon in a deliberative assembly (usually a legislative body) as to whether an officer (typically an executive) is deemed fit ...
. The Brotherhood also refused to participate in the National Congress where the King hoped to gather support for a peace settlement. Hussein was tasked by the United States with forming a joint Palestinian-Jordanian delegation to participate in the Madrid Peace Conference. The 28-member delegation consisted of 14 Jordanians and 14 Palestinians. Along with solving the Palestinian problem, Jordan sought to safeguard its interests in relation to security, the economy, water, and the environment. The peace conference convened on 30 October 1991, with delegations representing all parties to the conflict, the United States and the Soviet Union as co-sponsors, and the United Nations as observer. The conference set a framework for negotiations, and PLO representatives offered to accept a Palestinian state under a
confederation A confederation (also known as a confederacy or league) is a political union of sovereign states united for purposes of common action. Usually created by a treaty, confederations of states tend to be established for dealing with critical issu ...
with Jordan. At home, the Muslim Brotherhood considered Al-Masri and his government as too liberal, and the Brotherhood merged with independent Islamists and formed the
Islamic Action Front The Islamic Action Front (IAF; ) is an Islamist political party in Jordan. It was the political wing of the Muslim Brotherhood in Jordan. Founded in 1992 with 350 members, Ahmed Azaida, Ishaq Al-Farhan and Abdul Latif Arabiyat were the main f ...
(IAF), increasing its representation to 34 in the 80-member House of Representative, a force strong enough to bring down the royally appointed government with a motion of a
vote of no confidence A motion or vote of no confidence (or the inverse, a motion or vote of confidence) is a motion and corresponding vote thereon in a deliberative assembly (usually a legislative body) as to whether an officer (typically an executive) is deemed fi ...
. Hussein then replaced Al-Masri with his conservative cousin
Zaid ibn Shaker Zaid ibn Shaker, GBE, CVO (4 September 1934 – 30 August 2002) () was a Jordanian military officer and politician who served as the commander-in-chief of the Jordanian military for more than twelve years and the 27th Prime Minister of Jordan ...
. Subsequent peace talks continued in Washington, D.C., stretching from December 1991 to September 1993. Hussein could not participate in the details of the talks, a task he handed to his brother Hassan. Hussein was referred to the
Mayo Clinic Mayo Clinic () is a Nonprofit organization, private American Academic health science centre, academic Medical centers in the United States, medical center focused on integrated health care, healthcare, Mayo Clinic College of Medicine and Science ...
in the United States after having urological problems; he had his left kidney removed after tests showed his
ureter The ureters are tubes composed of smooth muscle that transport urine from the kidneys to the urinary bladder. In an adult human, the ureters typically measure 20 to 30 centimeters in length and about 3 to 4 millimeters in diameter. They are lin ...
contained precancerous cells. When Hussein went back healed to Jordan, he received a hero's welcomea third of Jordan's population filled the streets to greet him. On 23 November 1992 he gave an unusually aggressive speech. He called on extremists on both the right and left of the political spectrum to end their opposition to the peace negotiations, denounced what he saw as the Gulf countries' undemocratic nature, and called on Saddam to introduce democracy to Iraq. Meanwhile, Yitzhak Rabin, under the leftist Labor Party, emerged as prime minister of Israel. Thus, the PLO and Israeli representatives were quick to reach an agreement, which culminated in the 1993
Oslo Accords The Oslo Accords are a pair of interim agreements between Israel and the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO): the Oslo I Accord, signed in Washington, D.C., in 1993; and the Oslo II Accord, signed in Taba, Egypt, in 1995. They marked the st ...
. The Accords were held in secrecy between Arafat and Rabin without Hussein's knowledge, completely marginalizing Jordan and the Palestinian-Jordanian delegation in Washington. The parliamentary elections held on 8 November 1993 were the first
multi-party elections In political science, a multi-party system is a political system where more than two meaningfully-distinct political parties regularly run for office and win elections. Multi-party systems tend to be more common in countries using proportional r ...
since 1956, but the
proportional representation Proportional representation (PR) refers to any electoral system under which subgroups of an electorate are reflected proportionately in the elected body. The concept applies mainly to political divisions (Political party, political parties) amon ...
voting system was replaced by the controversial
one man, one vote "One man, one vote" or "one vote, one value" is a slogan used to advocate for the principle of equal representation in voting. This slogan is used by advocates of democracy and political equality, especially with regard to electoral reforms like ...
system. The latter system was introduced to limit the Islamist opposition's representation in the House of Representatives, by
gerrymandering Gerrymandering, ( , originally ) defined in the contexts of Representative democracy, representative electoral systems, is the political manipulation of Boundary delimitation, electoral district boundaries to advantage a Political party, pa ...
Palestinian majority areas and encouraging independents over
partisan Partisan(s) or The Partisan(s) may refer to: Military * Partisan (military), paramilitary forces engaged behind the front line ** Francs-tireurs et partisans, communist-led French anti-fascist resistance against Nazi Germany during WWII ** Ital ...
candidates. Consequently, the IAF's seats decreased from 34 to 21 seats out of 80. On 25 July 1994 Rabin and Hussein appeared at the
White House The White House is the official residence and workplace of the president of the United States. Located at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue Northwest (Washington, D.C.), NW in Washington, D.C., it has served as the residence of every U.S. president ...
and signed the Washington declaration, which announced the "end of the state of belligerency". Subsequent negotiations culminated in the
Israel–Jordan peace treaty The Israel–Jordan peace treaty (formally the "Treaty of Peace Between the State of Israel and the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan"),; Hebrew transliteration, transliterated: ''Heskem Ha-Shalom beyn Yisra'el Le-Yarden''; ; Arabic transliteration: ' ...
, signed on 26 October in a ceremony in
Wadi Araba The Arabah/Araba () or Aravah/Arava () is a loosely defined geographic area in the Negev Desert, south of the Dead Sea basin, which forms part of the border between Israel to the west and Jordan to the east. The old meaning, which was in use ...
. The treaty was a culmination of over 58 secret meetings over 31 years between Hussein and Israeli leaders. The treaty recognized Jordan's role in Jerusalem's holy sites, which angered Arafat who had sought such a position. Jordan's relations with the United States greatly improved: $700million worth of Jordan's debt was forgiven by the
United States Congress The United States Congress is the legislature, legislative branch of the federal government of the United States. It is a Bicameralism, bicameral legislature, including a Lower house, lower body, the United States House of Representatives, ...
, and
Bill Clinton William Jefferson Clinton (né Blythe III; born August 19, 1946) is an American politician and lawyer who was the 42nd president of the United States from 1993 to 2001. A member of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party, ...
's administration authorized a substantial flow of aid to Jordan. After 1995 Hussein became increasingly critical of Saddam's rule in Iraq. On 4 November 1995 the Israeli prime minister Yitzhak Rabin was assassinated by a Jewish extremist, who aimed to undermine Rabin's peace efforts with the Palestinians. Due to the close relationship forged with Rabin during the negotiations of the treaty, Hussein was invited to give a speech during Rabin's funeral in Jerusalem. This was the first time Hussein had been in Jerusalem since the 1967 war. Hussein drew parallels between Rabin's assassination and his grandfather's assassination in 1951: "We are not ashamed, nor are we afraid, nor are we anything but determined to continue the legacy for which my friend fell, as did my grandfather in this city when I was with him and but a boy." Jordan's signing of a peace treaty with Israel, and other issues, were met with disdain by Syria's president
Hafez al-Assad Hafez al-Assad (6 October 193010 June 2000) was a Syrian politician and military officer who was the president of Syria from 1971 until Death and state funeral of Hafez al-Assad, his death in 2000. He was previously the Prime Minister of Syria ...
. The CIA handed the King a detailed report in December 1995 warning him of a Syrian plot to assassinate him and his brother Hassan. A month later, the CIA sent Hussein another report warning Jordan of Iraqi plots to attack Western targets in Jordan to undermine Jordan's security due to its support for the Iraqi opposition. In Israel, Shimon Peres of the leftist Labor Party and
Benjamin Netanyahu Benjamin Netanyahu (born 21 October 1949) is an Israeli politician who has served as the prime minister of Israel since 2022, having previously held the office from 1996 to 1999 and from 2009 to 2021. Netanyahu is the longest-serving prime min ...
of the right-wing
Likud Likud (, ), officially known as Likud – National Liberal Movement (), is a major Right-wing politics, right-wing, political party in Israel. It was founded in 1973 by Menachem Begin and Ariel Sharon in an alliance with several right-wing par ...
party, were competing for the post of prime minister. Hussein's popularity in Israel had peaked after the peace treaty was signed, and he was expected to express support for a candidate. Hussein initially remained neutral, but later expressed support for Netanyahu.
Efraim Halevy Efraim Halevy (; born 2 December 1934) is an Israeli intelligence expert and diplomat. He was the 9th director of the Mossad and the 3rd head of the Israeli National Security Council. He is known for his part in bringing about the Israel–J ...
, then head of the Israeli intelligence agency (
Mossad The Institute for Intelligence and Special Operations (), popularly known as Mossad ( , ), is the national intelligence agency of the Israel, State of Israel. It is one of the main entities in the Israeli Intelligence Community, along with M ...
), claims that Hussein had preferred Netanyahu over Peres as he had deeply mistrusted the latter. The Israeli general election held on 29 May 1996 witnessed Netanyahu's ascension to the prime ministry.


Tensions with Israel

Hussein's support for Netanyahu soon backfired. Israel's actions during the 1996
Qana massacre The Qana massacre took place on April 18, 1996, near Qana, a village in then Israeli-occupied Southern Lebanon, when the Israeli military fired artillery shells at a United Nations compound, which was sheltering around 800 Lebanese civilian ...
in Southern Lebanon, the Likud government's decision to build settlements in
East Jerusalem East Jerusalem (, ; , ) is the portion of Jerusalem that was Jordanian annexation of the West Bank, held by Jordan after the 1948 Arab–Israeli War, as opposed to West Jerusalem, which was held by Israel. Captured and occupied in 1967, th ...
, and the events at the
Temple Mount The Temple Mount (), also known as the Noble Sanctuary (Arabic: الحرم الشريف, 'Haram al-Sharif'), and sometimes as Jerusalem's holy esplanade, is a hill in the Old City of Jerusalem, Old City of Jerusalem that has been venerated as a ...
where clashes between Palestinian and Israeli police ensued after Israeli tunnel diggings around the Mount, generated an uproar of criticism for Netanyahu in the Arab World. On 9 March 1997 Hussein sent Netanyahu a three-page letter expressing his disappointment. The King lambasted Netanyahu, with the letter's opening sentence stating: "My distress is genuine and deep over the accumulating tragic actions which you have initiated at the head of the Government of Israel, making peace – the worthiest objective of my life – appear more and more like a distant elusive mirage." Four days later, on 13 March, a Jordanian soldier patrolling the borders between Jordan and Israel in the north near the
Island of Peace The Island of Peace, or Al-Baqoura as it is known in Jordan, is an area in northern Jordan bordering the Jordan River. The park is at the confluence of the Jordan River and Yarmouk River.
, killed seven Israeli schoolgirls and wounded six others. The King, who was on an official visit to Spain, returned home immediately. He travelled to the Israeli town of
Beit Shemesh Beit Shemesh () is a city council (Israel), city located approximately west of Jerusalem in Israel's Jerusalem District. A center of Haredi Judaism and Modern Orthodoxy, Beit Shemesh has a population of 170,683 as of 2024. The city is named afte ...
to offer his condolences to the grieving families of the Israeli children killed. He went in front of the families, telling them that the incident was "a crime that is a shame for all of us. I feel as if I have lost a child of my own. If there is any purpose in life it will be to make sure that all the children no longer suffer the way our generation did." His gesture was received very warmly in Israel, and Hussein sent the families $1million in total as compensation for the loss of life. The soldier was determined to be mentally unstable by a Jordanian military tribunal and was sentenced to 20years in prison, which he served entirely. Clashes between Israeli forces and Palestinian groups in Gaza and the West Bank surfaced. Hussein's wife, Queen Noor, later claimed her husband was having trouble sleeping: "Everything he had worked for all his life, every relationship he had painstakingly built on trust and respect, every dream of peace and prosperity he had had for Jordan's children, was turning into a nightmare. I really did not know how much more Hussein could take." On 27 September 1997 eight
Mossad The Institute for Intelligence and Special Operations (), popularly known as Mossad ( , ), is the national intelligence agency of the Israel, State of Israel. It is one of the main entities in the Israeli Intelligence Community, along with M ...
agents entered Jordan using fake Canadian passports and attempted to assassinate Jordanian citizen
Khaled Mashal Khaled Mashal (, ; born 28 May 1956) is a Palestinian politician who served as the second chairman of the Hamas Political Bureau from 1996 until May 2017, when he was succeeded by Ismail Haniyeh. He has also covered duties as the acting lea ...
, head of the Palestinian group
Hamas The Islamic Resistance Movement, abbreviated Hamas (the Arabic acronym from ), is a Palestinian nationalist Sunni Islam, Sunni Islamism, Islamist political organisation with a military wing, the Qassam Brigades. It has Gaza Strip under Hama ...
. Hussein was preparing for a 30-year Hamas-Israel truce three days prior to the attempt, after Hamas had launched two attacks in Jerusalem. Two Mossad agents followed Mashal to his office and injected poison into his ears, but they were caught by Mashal's bodyguard. The two agents were then held by the Jordanian police, while the six other agents hid in the Israeli embassy. Furious, Hussein met with an Israeli delegate who attempted to explain the situation; the King said in a speech about the incident that he felt that somebody "had spat in his face." Jordanian authorities requested Netanyahu to provide an antidote to save Mashal's life, but Netanyahu refused to do so. Jordan then threatened to storm the Israeli embassy and capture the rest of the Mossad team, but Israel argued that it would be against the
Geneva Conventions upright=1.15, The original document in single pages, 1864 The Geneva Conventions are international humanitarian laws consisting of four treaties and three additional protocols that establish international legal standards for humanitarian t ...
. Jordan replied that the Geneva Conventions "do not apply to terrorists", and a
special operations Special operations or special ops are military activities conducted, according to NATO, by "specially designated, organized, selected, trained, and equipped forces using unconventional techniques and modes of employment." Special operations ma ...
team headed by Hussein's son Abdullah was put in charge of the operation. Hussein called American president Clinton and requested his intervention, threatening to annul the treaty if Israel did not provide the antidote. Clinton later managed to get Israel's approval to reveal the name of the antidote, and complained about Netanyahu: "This man is impossible!" Khaled Mashal recovered, but Jordan's relations with Israel deteriorated and Israeli requests to contact Hussein were rebuffed. The Mossad operatives were released by Jordan after Israel agreed to release 23 Jordanian and 50 Palestinian prisoners including Sheikh
Ahmed Yassin Sheikh Ahmed Ismail Hassan Yassin (; June 1936 – 22 March 2004) was a Palestinian politician and imam who founded Hamas, an Islamist political and military organization. He also served as the first chairman of the Hamas Shura Council and ...
. Mounting opposition in Jordan to the peace treaty with Israel led Hussein to put greater restrictions on
freedom of speech Freedom of speech is a principle that supports the freedom of an individual or a community to articulate their opinions and ideas without fear of retaliation, censorship, or legal sanction. The rights, right to freedom of expression has been r ...
. Several dissidents were imprisoned including
Laith Shubeilat Laith Shubeilat (; 28 November 1942 – 18 December 2022) was a Jordanian Islamist politician. He was born in Amman, Jordan in 1942, a son of another Jordanian public figure, Farhan Shubeilat, from Tafila, a city within the southern district of ...
, a prominent Islamist. A few months into his imprisonment, the King personally gave Shubeilat, his fiercest critic, a ride home from the Swaqa prison. However, the crackdown led the opposition groups in Jordan to boycott the 1997 parliamentary elections. In 1998 Jordan refused a secret request from Netanyahu to attack Iraq using Jordanian airspace after claiming Saddam held weapons of mass destruction.


Illness, death and funeral

In May 1998 Hussein, a heavy smoker, was admitted to the
Mayo Clinic Mayo Clinic () is a Nonprofit organization, private American Academic health science centre, academic Medical centers in the United States, medical center focused on integrated health care, healthcare, Mayo Clinic College of Medicine and Science ...
, but doctors were unable to diagnose his ailment. Hussein returned to the clinic in July after suffering severe fevers; doctors then diagnosed him with
Non-Hodgkin lymphoma Non-Hodgkin lymphoma (NHL), also known as non-Hodgkin's lymphoma, is a group of blood cancers that includes all types of lymphomas except Hodgkin lymphomas. Symptoms include enlarged lymph nodes, fever, night sweats, weight loss, and tiredn ...
. He stayed in the clinic until the end of 1998, while his brother Hassan, who had been crown prince since 1965, acted as regent. He was given six courses of
chemotherapy Chemotherapy (often abbreviated chemo, sometimes CTX and CTx) is the type of cancer treatment that uses one or more anti-cancer drugs (list of chemotherapeutic agents, chemotherapeutic agents or alkylating agents) in a standard chemotherapy re ...
for his lymph gland cancer over a five-month period. Hussein gained the respect of the Mayo Clinic staff for his warmth and kindness; on one occasion, a janitor cried uncontrollably after Hussein prepared a birthday party for her in his suite. In October 1998, Bill Clinton invited Hussein, during his stay at the clinic for chemotherapy treatment, to attend the Wye Plantation talks after a stalemate was reached between the Israeli and Palestinian delegations. Hussein, who looked bald and weakened, arrived and urged both Arafat and Netanyahu to overcome the obstacles. Encouraged by his presence, the two leaders agreed to resolve their difficulties. Hussein received a standing ovation at the ceremony and praise from Clinton for interrupting his treatment and coming over. At home, 1998 was a difficult year for Jordanians: GDP growth had slowed considerably and could not keep pace with an accelerating population growth. Other incidents included a government scandal involving contamination of the country's water supply. Samih Batikhi, the director of the General Intelligence Directorate (mukhabarat), visited Hussein during his stay at the Mayo Clinic to keep him updated. Batikhi discredited the King's brother Hassan, and often voiced his support for Hussein's eldest son Abdullah as successor. Abdullah, who was 36 years old at the time, enjoyed great support from the army. He was crown prince when he was born in 1962, but Hussein transferred the title to his brother Hassan in 1965 due to political uncertainty back then. King Hussein had changed his line of succession a total of four times: "From his brother Muhammad, to his infant son Abdullah, to his second brother Hassan, and again to his then-grown-up son Abdullah." On his way back to Jordan in January 1999, Hussein stopped in London. Doctors advised him to rest and stay in England for a few weeks, as he was still too fragile to travel. According to Jordanian government sources, Hussein stated that: Upon his arrival in Jordan, after a six-month medical absence from the country, he announced he was "completely cured". Hussein returned and publicly criticized his brother Hassan's management of Jordanian internal affairs. He also accused him of abusing his powers as regent and crown prince. On 24 January 1999, Hussein replaced Hassan with his son Abdullah as heir apparent. Hassan gracefully accepted the King's decision on television, and congratulated his nephew Abdullah on his designation as crown prince. On 25 January, the day after he proclaimed Abdullah as crown prince, Hussein returned abruptly to the United States, after experiencing feversa sign of recurrent lymphoma. On Tuesday 2 February, the king received a
bone marrow transplant Hematopoietic stem-cell transplantation (HSCT) is the transplantation of multipotent hematopoietic stem cells, usually derived from bone marrow, peripheral blood, or umbilical cord blood, in order to replicate inside a patient and produce a ...
, which failed. It was thereupon reported that Hussein had suffered internal organ failure, and was in critical condition. On 4 February, and at his request, he was flown to Jordan where he arrived in a coma. Fighter jets from several countries flew with his plane as it passed over their territories, including the United States, Britain, and Israel. Hussein arrived at the
King Hussein Medical Center King Hussein Medical City () is a military medical complex that has five hospitals situated in Amman, Jordan. It is affiliated with the Jordanian Royal Medical Services (JRMS), a body of the Jordanian Armed Forces responsible for providing medica ...
in Amman where it was raining heavily, yet thousands flocked from all over Jordan and gathered at the main entrance. The crowds chanted his name, some weeping, others holding his pictures. At 11:43 on 7 February, Hussein was pronounced dead. Hussein's flag-draped
coffin A coffin or casket is a funerary box used for viewing or keeping a corpse, for burial, entombment or cremation. Coffins are sometimes referred to as caskets, particularly in American English. A distinction is commonly drawn between "coffins" a ...
, accompanied by honor guard troops wearing
Keffiyeh The keffiyeh (), also regionally known as a hattah (), ghutrah (), or shemagh (), is a traditional headdress worn by men from parts of the Middle East. It is fashioned from a square scarf, and is usually made of cotton. The keffiyeh is commonly ...
, was taken on a 90-minute
procession A procession is an organized body of people walking in a formal or ceremonial manner. History Processions have in all peoples and at all times been a natural form of public celebration, as forming an orderly and impressive ceremony. Religious ...
through the streets of the capital city of
Amman Amman ( , ; , ) is the capital and the largest city of Jordan, and the country's economic, political, and cultural center. With a population of four million as of 2021, Amman is Jordan's primate city and is the largest city in the Levant ...
. Despite the cold and windy weather, an estimated 800,000 Jordanians came to pay their respects. Riot police were stationed along the nine-mile-long route to try to hold back the crowds who scrambled for a glimpse of the coffin. The
UN General Assembly The United Nations General Assembly (UNGA or GA; , AGNU or AG) is one of the six principal organs of the United Nations (UN), serving as its main deliberative, policymaking, and representative organ. Currently in its 79th session, its powers, ...
held an Emergency Special Session in "Tribute to the Memory of His Majesty the King of Jordan" on the same day. The King's funeral was held in the Raghadan Palace. The funeral was the largest gathering of foreign leaders since 1995, and it was the first time that Syrian president Hafez al-Assad was in the same room with Israeli statesmen. Khaled Mashal was also in the same room as the Mossad leaders who had tried to assassinate him just two years earlier. Four American presidents were present: Bill Clinton, George H.W. Bush, Jimmy Carter, and
Gerald Ford Gerald Rudolph Ford Jr. (born Leslie Lynch King Jr.; July 14, 1913December 26, 2006) was the 38th president of the United States, serving from 1974 to 1977. A member of the Republican Party (United States), Republican Party, Ford assumed the p ...
. Bill Clinton said about the funeral: "I don't think I have ever seen a greater outpouring of the world's appreciation and the world's love for a human being than I've seen today." Hussein was succeeded as king by his eldest son, Abdullah II.


Legacy


Image

Hussein's biographer
Avi Shlaim Avi Shlaim (, ; born 31 October 1945) is an Israeli and British historian of Iraqi Jewish descent. He is one of Israel's " New Historians", a group of Israeli scholars who put forward critical interpretations of the history of Zionism and Isr ...
has stated that the assassination of his grandfather King AbdullahI in Jerusalem was the most formative event in his life, as he had witnessed the event personally at the age of 15. Two years later, the 17-year-old schoolboy would become King. Hussein inherited the throne to a young Kingdom, whose neighbors questioned its legitimacy, along with the Jordanian-controlled West Bank. From an early age he had to shoulder a heavy responsibility. The Kingdom had few natural resources, and a large Palestinian refugee population. He was able to gain his country considerable political weight on a global scale despite its limited potential. In 1980, an Israeli intelligence report described Hussein to be "a man trapped on a bridge burning at both ends, with crocodiles in the river beneath him." Hussein was able to survive through four turbulent decades of the Arab-Israel conflict and the Cold War, successfully balancing pressures from
Arab nationalists Arab nationalism () is a political ideology asserting that Arabs constitute a single nation. As a traditional nationalist ideology, it promotes Arab culture and civilization, celebrates Arab history, the Arabic language and Arabic literatur ...
,
Soviet Union The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR), commonly known as the Soviet Union, was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 until Dissolution of the Soviet ...
,
Western countries The Western world, also known as the West, primarily refers to various nations and states in Western Europe, Northern America, and Australasia; with some debate as to whether those in Eastern Europe and Latin America also constitute the West. ...
and Israel. Hussein considered the Palestinian issue to be the overriding national security issue, even after Jordan lost the West Bank in 1967 and after it renounced claims to it in 1988. Initially, Hussein attempted to unite both banks of the Jordan River as one people, but with the formation of the PLO in the 1960s, it became difficult to maintain such a policy. He was relentless in pursuit of peace, viewing that the only way to solve the conflict was by peaceful means, excluding his decision to join the war in 1967. The decision cost him half his kingdom and his grandfather's legacy. After the war he emerged as an advocate for Palestinian statehood. After renouncing ties to the West Bank in 1988, he remained committed to solving the conflict. His 58 secret meetings held with Israeli representatives since 1963 culminated in the signing of the Israel–Jordan peace treaty in 1994, which he considered to be his "crowning achievement". Hussein's policy of co-opting the opposition was his most revered. He was the region's longest reigning leader, even though he was subject to dozens of assassination attempts and plots to overthrow him. He was known to pardon political opponents and dissidents, including those who had attempted to assassinate him. He entrusted some of them with senior posts in the government. On one occasion before his death, he gave his fiercest critic a ride home from prison after having ordered his release. He was described as being a " benign authoritarian". During his 46-year-reign, Hussein, who was seen as a charismatic, courageous, and humble leader, became widely known among Jordanians as the "builder king". He turned the Kingdom from a backwater divided polity into a reasonably stable well-governed modern state. By 1999, 90% of Jordanians had been born during Hussein's reign. From the very start, Hussein concentrated on building an economic and industrial infrastructure to stimulate the economy and raise the
standard of living Standard of living is the level of income, comforts and services available to an individual, community or society. A contributing factor to an individual's quality of life, standard of living is generally concerned with objective metrics outsid ...
. During the 1960s, Jordan's main industriesincluding phosphate, potash and cementwere developed, and the very first network of highways was built throughout the kingdom. Social indicators reflect King Hussein's successes. Whereas in 1950 water, sanitation, and electricity were available to only 10% of Jordanians, at the end of his rule these had reached 99% of the population. In 1960 only 33% of Jordanians were literate; by 1996 this number had climbed to 85.5%. In 1961 the average Jordanian consumed a daily intake of 2,198 calories; by 1992 this figure had increased by 37.5% to reach 3,022 calories. UNICEF statistics show that between 1981 and 1991, Jordan had achieved the world's fastest annual rate of decline in infant mortalityfrom 70 deaths per 1,000 births in 1981 to 37 per 1,000 in 1991, a drop of over 47%. Hussein established the Al-Amal medical center in 1997, a clinic specializing in cancer treatment in Jordan. Renamed in 2002 to the
King Hussein Cancer Center 250px, King Hussein Cancer Center under expansion. The King Hussein Cancer Foundation (KHCF) and Center (KHCC) (Arabic مؤسسة ومركز الحسين للسرطان),
in honor of the late King, the center is a leading medical facility in the region, treating around 4,000 patients each year.


Criticism

The King disliked paperwork, and had no solid view for the economy. He was dubbed the "fundraiser-in-chief": throughout his reign he managed to obtain foreign aid from different sources, leaving a legacy of a foreign aid-dependent Jordan. He obtained British aid in the early 1950s, American aid from 1957 onwards, Gulf aid in the 1960s and 1970s, Arab League and Iraqi aid in the early 1980s, and, after formalizing peace with Israel, American aid in the 1990s. He was also seen as too lenient toward some ministers who were alleged to be corrupt. After establishing peace with Israel in 1994 he faced mounting opposition to the deal, with opponents concentrating their criticism on him. The King reacted by introducing restrictions on freedom of speech, and changing the parliamentary electoral law into the one-man, one-vote system in a bid to increase representation of independent regime loyalists and tribal groups at the expense of Islamist and partisan candidates. The moves impeded Jordan's path towards democracy that had started in 1956 and resumed in 1989. In 1977,
Bob Woodward Robert Upshur Woodward (born March 26, 1943) is an American investigative journalist. He started working for ''The Washington Post'' as a reporter in 1971 and now holds the honorific title of associate editor though the Post no longer employs ...
of ''
The Washington Post ''The Washington Post'', locally known as ''The'' ''Post'' and, informally, ''WaPo'' or ''WP'', is an American daily newspaper published in Washington, D.C., the national capital. It is the most widely circulated newspaper in the Washington m ...
'' reported that King Hussein received funds from the
CIA The Central Intelligence Agency (CIA; ) is a civilian foreign intelligence service of the federal government of the United States tasked with advancing national security through collecting and analyzing intelligence from around the world and ...
for 20 years. This money was used by the King to establish an intelligence service but was nevertheless criticized for being handled away from the government's supervision.


Personal life


Marriages and children

King Hussein was less than seventeen years old, and unmarried, when he came to the throne of Jordan in 1952. He married four times. He had twelve acknowledged children, and one alleged illegitimate child. His wives and children were: * Sharifa Dina bint Abdul-Hamid (1929–2019), on 19 April 1955. She was an Egyptian-born third cousin of King Hussein's father, King Talal. She was a member of the
Hashemite The Hashemites (), also House of Hashim, are the Dynasty, royal family of Jordan, which they have ruled since 1921, and were the royal family of the kingdoms of Kingdom of Hejaz, Hejaz (1916–1925), Arab Kingdom of Syria, Syria (1920), and Kingd ...
family like Hussein and a graduate of
Cambridge University The University of Cambridge is a Public university, public collegiate university, collegiate research university in Cambridge, England. Founded in 1209, the University of Cambridge is the List of oldest universities in continuous operation, wo ...
and former lecturer in
English literature English literature is literature written in the English language from the English-speaking world. The English language has developed over more than 1,400 years. The earliest forms of English, a set of Anglo-Frisian languages, Anglo-Frisian d ...
at
Cairo University Cairo University () is Egypt's premier public university. Its main campus is in Giza, immediately across the Nile from Cairo. It was founded on 21 December 1908;"Brief history and development of Cairo University." Cairo University Faculty of En ...
. The marriage was arranged. They separated in 1956 and were divorced in 1957, at which time Princess Dina became known as Her Royal Highness Princess Dina Abdul-Hamid of Jordan. She became an Egyptian citizen in 1963, and in October 1970, married Lieut-Colonel Asad Sulayman Abd al-Qadir, alias Salah Ta'amari, a Palestinian
guerrilla Guerrilla warfare is a form of unconventional warfare in which small groups of irregular military, such as rebels, Partisan (military), partisans, paramilitary personnel or armed civilians, which may include Children in the military, recruite ...
commando who became a high-ranking official in the
Palestine Liberation Organization The Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO; ) is a Palestinian nationalism, Palestinian nationalist coalition that is internationally recognized as the official representative of the Palestinians, Palestinian people in both the occupied Pale ...
. ** Princess Alia bint Hussein (born in 1956). Married first to Nasser Wasfi Mirza, they have one child together, a son, Hussein. They divorced in 1987. She remarried in 1988 to
Sayyid ''Sayyid'' is an honorific title of Hasanid and Husaynid lineage, recognized as descendants of the Islamic prophet Muhammad through his daughter Fatima and Ali's sons Hasan ibn Ali, Hasan and Husayn ibn Ali, Husayn. The title may also refer ...
Mohammed Al-Saleh; they have two sons, Talal and Abdul-Hamid. * Toni Avril Gardiner (born in 1941), on 25 May 1961, titled Princess Muna al-Hussein from marriage. They met when she was working in a secretarial capacity on the sets of the film '' Lawrence of Arabia.'' An award-winning field hockey player and daughter of a British army officer, Lieutenant-Colonel Walter Percy Gardiner, she was given the title ''Her Royal Highness'' Princess Muna al-Hussein, retaining this title after they divorced on 21 December 1972. **
Abdullah II Abdullah II (Abdullah bin Hussein; born 30 January 1962) is King of Jordan, having ascended the throne on 7 February 1999. He is a member of the Hashemites, who have been the reigning royal family of Jordan since 1921, and is traditionally reg ...
(born in 1962). The current King of Jordan. Married to Rania Al-Yassin. They have four children: Crown Prince Hussein, Princess Iman, Princess Salma and Prince Hashem. **
Prince Faisal bin Hussein Prince Faisal bin Al Hussein (; born 11 October 1963) is a Jordanian prince who is a son of King Hussein and Princess Muna, and the younger brother of King Abdullah II. Periodically he has served as regent during his brother's absences abroad. ...
(born in 1963).
Lieutenant-General Lieutenant general (Lt Gen, LTG and similar) is a military rank used in many countries. The rank traces its origins to the Middle Ages, where the title of lieutenant general was held by the second-in-command on the battlefield, who was normall ...
, former
Commander Commander (commonly abbreviated as Cmdr.) is a common naval officer rank as well as a job title in many army, armies. Commander is also used as a rank or title in other formal organizations, including several police forces. In several countri ...
of
Royal Jordanian Air Force The Royal Jordanian Air Force (RJAF; Arabic: سلاح الجو الملكي الأردني, ''Silāḥ al-Jaww al-Malakī al-ʾUrdunī'') is the aerial warfare branch of the Jordanian Armed Forces. Founded in 1955, the RJAF serves as the primary ...
. Currently Deputy Supreme Commander of the Jordanian Armed Forces. Married first to Alia Tabbaa (now known as Princess Alia Tabbaa). They have four children: Princess Ayah, Prince Omar, and twins Princess Sara and Princess Aisha. They divorced in 2008. He remarried in 2010 to Sara Qabbani and divorced in 2013. He is now married to Zeina Lubadeh, with whom he has two sons, Prince Abdullah and Prince Muhammad. **
Princess Aisha bint Hussein Princess Aisha bint Al Hussein () (born 23 April 1968) is the sister of King Abdullah II of Jordan and is the twin sister of Princess Zein. Her parents are King Hussein and Princess Muna. Education Aisha was born in 23 April 1968 at Palestine H ...
(born in 1968, twin with her sister Zein). Brigadier-General of
Jordanian Armed Forces The Jordanian Armed Forces (JAF) (, romanized: ''Al-Quwwat Al-Musallaha Al-Urduniyya''), also referred to as the Arab Army (, ''Al-Jaysh Al-Arabi''), are the military forces of the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan. They consist of the ground forces, ...
. Married to Zeid Juma, they have two children, a son, Aoun, and a daughter, Muna. They are now divorced. She married Ashraf Banayoti in 2016 and divorced him in the same year. ** Princess Zein bint Hussein (born in 1968, twin with her sister Aisha). Married to Majdi Al-Saleh, they have two children: a son Jaafar and a daughter Jumana, and an adopted daughter called Tahani Al-Shawan. * Alia Bahauddin Toukan, Queen Alia Al-Hussein (1948–1977), on 24 December 1972. She died in a helicopter crash in
Amman Amman ( , ; , ) is the capital and the largest city of Jordan, and the country's economic, political, and cultural center. With a population of four million as of 2021, Amman is Jordan's primate city and is the largest city in the Levant ...
,
Jordan Jordan, officially the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan, is a country in the Southern Levant region of West Asia. Jordan is bordered by Syria to the north, Iraq to the east, Saudi Arabia to the south, and Israel and the occupied Palestinian ter ...
, in 1977. Jordan's Queen Alia International Airport is named after her. She was the daughter of Jordan's first ambassador to the United Nations,
Sayyid ''Sayyid'' is an honorific title of Hasanid and Husaynid lineage, recognized as descendants of the Islamic prophet Muhammad through his daughter Fatima and Ali's sons Hasan ibn Ali, Hasan and Husayn ibn Ali, Husayn. The title may also refer ...
Baha ud-din Toukan. ** Princess Haya bint Hussein (born in 1974). President of the Fédération Équestre Internationale 2008–2014. Formerly married to Sheikh
Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum (; born 15 July 1949) is an Emirati politician and royal who is the current ruler of Dubai, and serves as the Vice President of the United Arab Emirates, vice president and Prime Minister of the United Arab ...
, vice president and prime minister of the United Arab Emirates and ruler of
Dubai Dubai (Help:IPA/English, /duːˈbaɪ/ Help:Pronunciation respelling key, ''doo-BYE''; Modern Standard Arabic, Modern Standard Arabic: ; Emirati Arabic, Emirati Arabic: , Romanization of Arabic, romanized: Help:IPA/English, /diˈbej/) is the Lis ...
. They have two children: Sheikha Jalila and Sheikh Zayed. **
Prince Ali bin Hussein Prince Ali bin Al Hussein (; born 23 December 1975) is the third son of King Hussein of Jordan, and the second child of the king by his third wife, Queen Alia. He is also the half brother of Abdullah II of Jordan, King Abdullah II. He is a memb ...
(born in 1975). Married to Rym Brahimi now known as
Princess Rym al-Ali Princess Rym Ali (née Rym Brahimi; born 1969) is the Algerian wife of Prince Ali bin Hussein of Jordan, whom she married on 7 September 2004. She is a former journalist. Early life She is the daughter of Lakhdar Brahimi, former Algerian Min ...
. They have two children, Princess Jalilah and Prince Abdullah. ** Abir Muhaisen, (born in 1972, adopted by Hussein and Alia in 1976). * Lisa Najeeb Halaby (born in 1951), renamed Queen Noor Al-Hussein on her conversion to Islam, married in
Amman Amman ( , ; , ) is the capital and the largest city of Jordan, and the country's economic, political, and cultural center. With a population of four million as of 2021, Amman is Jordan's primate city and is the largest city in the Levant ...
on 15 June 1978. An Arab-American of Syrian descent, daughter of
Najeeb Halaby Najeeb Elias "Jeeb" Halaby Jr. (; November 19, 1915 – July 2, 2003) was an American businessman, government official, aviator, and the father of Queen Noor of Jordan. As a United States Navy test pilot he is known for making the first transco ...
. **
Hamzah bin Hussein Hamzah bin Al Hussein (; born 29 March 1980) is the fourth son of King Hussein bin Talal of Jordan overall and the first by his American-born fourth wife, Queen Noor. He was named Crown Prince of Jordan on 7 February 1999, a position he held ...
(born in 1980). Married first to Princess Noor bint Asem, third daughter of
Prince Asem bin Nayef Prince Asem bin Nayef (; born 27 April 1948) is the son of Prince Nayef bin Abdullah (a younger son of Abdullah I of Jordan) and Princess Mihrimah Sultan (granddaughter of Sultan Mehmed V of the Ottoman Empire). It is claimed he is the 42nd ge ...
, by his first wife, Princess Firouzeh Vokhshouri. Princess Noor became Princess Noor al-Hamzah upon her marriage. Together they have a daughter, Princess Haya. They divorced in 2009. He remarried in 2012 to
Princess Basmah Bani Ahmad Princess Basmah Hamzah (, née Basmah Bani Ahmad Al-Outom ; born 1979) is the second wife of Hamzah bin Hussein of Jordan. Family Her father is Mahmoud Hassan Bani Ahmad Al-Outom, who was born and raised in the town of Kufr Khall north of Je ...
(''née'' Al-Outom); they have four daughters and two sons: Princess Zein, Princess Noor, Princess Badiya, Princess Nafisa, Prince Hussein and Prince Muhammad. **
Prince Hashim bin Hussein Prince Hashim bin Al Hussein (born 10 June 1981) is the younger of the two sons of King Hussein and Queen Noor of Jordan. In her autobiography, Queen Noor states that Hashim was named after the clan of Hashim (Banu Hashim), the tribe to which t ...
(born in 1981). Married to Princess Fahdah (''née'' Abunayyan). They have three daughters and two sons: Princess Halaah, Princess Rayet Al-Noor, Princess Fatima Al-Alia, Prince Hussein Haidara and Prince Mohammad Al Hassan. ** Princess Iman bint Hussein (born in 1983). Married to Zaid Azmi Mirza, together they have a son, Omar. ** Princess Raiyah bint Hussein (born in 1986). Married to Faris Ned Donovan. From an affair with the American Jewish actress Susan Cabot, Hussein allegedly had an illegitimate son, Timothy, in 1964. Susan and Timothy were supported for many years out of the Jordanian royal
privy purse The Privy Purse is the British sovereign's private income, mostly from the Duchy of Lancaster. This amounted to £20.1 million in net income for the year to 31 March 2018. Overview The Duchy is a landed estate of approximately 46,000 acres (20 ...
. In 1986, Timothy killed his mother. He served a prison sentence for
involuntary manslaughter Manslaughter is a common law legal term for homicide considered by law as less culpable than murder. The distinction between murder and manslaughter is sometimes said to have first been made by the ancient Athenian lawmaker Draco in the 7th ce ...
and died in 2003.


Interests

Hussein was an enthusiastic
ham radio Amateur radio, also known as ham radio, is the use of the radio frequency spectrum for purposes of non-commercial exchange of messages, wireless experimentation, self-training, private recreation, radiosport, contesting, and emergency communi ...
operator and an Honorary Member of The Radio Society of Harrow and a life member of the
American Radio Relay League The American Radio Relay League (ARRL) is the largest membership association of amateur radio enthusiasts in the United States. ARRL is a non-profit organization and was co-founded on April 6, 1914, by Hiram Percy Maxim and Clarence D. Tuska of ...
. He was popular in the amateur radio community and insisted that fellow operators refer to him without his title. His call sign was JY1, which inspired the name for Jordan's first cube-sat satellite, the JY1-SAT, which was launched in 2018. Hussein was a trained pilot, flying both airplanes and helicopters as a hobby. In a 1999 interview
Henry Kissinger Henry Alfred Kissinger (May 27, 1923 – November 29, 2023) was an American diplomat and political scientist who served as the 56th United States secretary of state from 1973 to 1977 and the 7th National Security Advisor (United States), natio ...
described being flown by Hussein, saying that "...he was a daring pilot, and he would be zooming along at treetop level, and my wife, in order to be politely insistent would say, 'You know I didn't know helicopters could fly so low.' 'Oh!' said the King, 'They can fly lower!' and went below tree top level just skimming along on the ground. That really aged me rapidly."Nightline: Hussein of Jordan, ABC Evening News for Friday, 5 February 1999 Hussein was also an avid fan of motorcycles. The cover of the paperback version of Queen Noor's book '' Leap of Faith: Memoirs of an Unexpected Life'' features a photo of the King and Queen riding a
Harley-Davidson Harley-Davidson, Inc. (H-D, or simply Harley) is an American motorcycle manufacturer headquartered in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Founded in 1903, it is one of two major American motorcycle manufacturers to survive the Great Depression along with i ...
motorcycle. The King was also a fan of race-car driving, water sports, skiing, and tennis.


Military ranks

King Hussein I bin Talal I held the following ranks: * : **
Admiral of the Fleet An admiral of the fleet or shortened to fleet admiral is a senior naval flag officer rank, usually equivalent to field marshal and marshal of the air force. An admiral of the fleet is typically senior to an admiral. It is also a generic ter ...
,
Royal Jordanian Navy The Royal Jordanian Navy () is the naval warfare branch of the Armed Forces of the Kingdom of Jordan. As Jordan is landlocked except at its southern extremity, with only of shoreline along the Gulf of Aqaba providing access to the Red Sea, its N ...
. **
Field Marshal Field marshal (or field-marshal, abbreviated as FM) is the most senior military rank, senior to the general officer ranks. Usually, it is the highest rank in an army (in countries without the rank of Generalissimo), and as such, few persons a ...
,
Royal Jordanian Army The Royal Jordanian Army (Arabic: اَلْقُوَّاتُ ٱلْبَرِّيَّةُ ٱلْأُرْدُنِيَّةُ; ) is the ground force branch of the Jordanian Armed Forces (JAF). It draws its origins from units such as the Arab Legion, ...
. **
Marshal of the Air Force Marshal of the air force or marshal of the air is a five-star rank (or NATO equivalent OF-10) and an English-language term for the most senior rank in some air forces. It is usually the direct equivalent of a general of the air force in other a ...
,
Royal Jordanian Air Force The Royal Jordanian Air Force (RJAF; Arabic: سلاح الجو الملكي الأردني, ''Silāḥ al-Jaww al-Malakī al-ʾUrdunī'') is the aerial warfare branch of the Jordanian Armed Forces. Founded in 1955, the RJAF serves as the primary ...
. * : ** Honorary Field Marshal of the
Egyptian Army The Egyptian Army (), officially the Egyptian Ground Forces (), is the land warfare branch (and largest service branch) of the Egyptian Armed Forces. Until the declaration of the Republic and the abolishment of the monarchy on 18 June 1953, it w ...
– 21 February 1955. * : ** Honorary Air Chief Marshal of the
Royal Air Force The Royal Air Force (RAF) is the Air force, air and space force of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories and Crown Dependencies. It was formed towards the end of the World War I, First World War on 1 April 1918, on the merger of t ...
– 19 July 1966


Ancestry


Writings

* *


Notes


See also

*
King Abdullah II Abdullah II (Abdullah bin Hussein; born 30 January 1962) is King of Jordan, having ascended the throne on 7 February 1999. He is a member of the Hashemites, who have been the reigning royal family of Jordan since 1921, and is traditionally reg ...
*
Hashemites The Hashemites (), also House of Hashim, are the royal family of Jordan, which they have ruled since 1921, and were the royal family of the kingdoms of Hejaz (1916–1925), Syria (1920), and Iraq (1921–1958). The family had ruled the city of Me ...
*
List of kings of Jordan The king of the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan () is the monarchical head of state of Jordan. He serves as the head of the Jordanian monarchy—the Hashemite dynasty. The king is addressed as His Majesty (). Jordan is a constitutional monarchy. ...
* List of things named after King Hussein *
List of covers of Time magazine (1960s) This is a list of people and other topics appearing on the cover of ''Time'' magazine in the 1960s. ''Time'' was first published in 1923. As ''Time'' became established as one of the United States' leading news magazines, an appearance on the co ...


References


Bibliography

* Ashton, Nigel (2008). ''King Hussein of Jordan: A Political Life'' (Yale University Press)
excerpt
* * * * * *


External links

* *
Remembering King Hussein video
{{Authority control 1935 births 1999 deaths Graduates of the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst Victoria College, Alexandria alumni People educated at Harrow School Kings of Jordan House of Hashim Sunni monarchs Jordanian Sunni Muslims Field marshals Marshals of the air force Royal Air Force air marshals Royal Air Force officers holding honorary commissions Jordanian aviators Amateur radio people Deaths from non-Hodgkin lymphoma People from Amman Deaths from cancer in Jordan Jordanian anti-communists Crown princes of Jordan Collars of the Order of Isabella the Catholic Knights Grand Cross with Collar of the Order of Merit of the Italian Republic Honorary Knights Grand Cross of the Royal Victorian Order Bailiffs Grand Cross of the Order of St John Grand Cross of the Legion of Honour Honorary Knights Grand Cross of the Order of the Bath Knights of the Golden Fleece of Spain Extraordinary Grades of the Order of Merit (Lebanon) Grand Crosses of Military Merit Recipients of King Hamad Order of the Renaissance Recipients of the Grand Star of the Decoration for Services to the Republic of Austria Articles containing video clips Grand Crosses Special Class of the Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany Sons of kings 20th-century Jordanian people Foreign recipients of the Nishan-e-Pakistan Recipients of the Ronald Reagan Freedom Award Recipients of the Grand Order of Mugunghwa 20th-century monarchs in the Middle East