AMMAN: Two separate demonstrations were held in the Jordanian capital of Amman on Friday in protest against the upcoming Peace for Prosperity economic workshop due to take place June 25 and 26 in Manama, the capital of Bahrain, in which the US will lay out the economic components of President Donald Trump’s administration’s Middle East peace plan.Some 3,000 protesters streamed out of the Al-Husseini Mosque in downtown Amman in response to a call by the Islamic Movement and others for Jordan to take a firm stance against the US-led peace initiative.Jordan’s King Abdullah has made it clear that Jordan will not support the resettlement of Palestinian refugees, nor any plan that does not include a Palestinian state with Jerusalem as its capital. He has also rejected claims that “Jordan is Palestine.”Protesters included leading political, union and parliamentary leaders at a rally that also included calls for the cancellation of the Jordan-Israel peace treaty and the defense of Al-Aqsa Mosque “with our blood and soul,” along with an affirmation that Jordanians “will not yield to America.” In reference to Jerusalem, protesters chanted, “Jordanians will never forget that they are the custodians of Al Aqsa” — a clear reference to the Hashemite custodianship of Islamic holy sites in Jerusalem.A young protester told Arab News, “We tell those who intend to attend the Bahrain workshop that Palestine and Jerusalem are not up for sale.”The head of the Islamic Movement’s parliamentary committee Abed Akalileh, called on the protestors to reject Trump’s “Deal of the Century” and any efforts to negotiate on Jerusalem.“Palestine is not for sale or exchange. We want the king to know that we are behind him and that the people are with him no matter how much pressure and siege we are under,” he said. “How can we hint about participating in the Bahrain workshop when Palestinians, Lebanese, and Iraqis have said they will not go? We should also announce we are not going.”Jordan has yet to officially announce its plans, but US officials have said that Jordan, Egypt and Morocco have indicated to them that they will attend the workshop.A much smaller demonstration of leftists took place Friday afternoon, with protesters marching to the US Embassy in west Amman’s Abdoun neighborhood. The protesters criticized the US and “Arab reactionaries,” and insisted that the people of Jordan will not compromise on Palestine and Jerusalem.
