The Country & People of Jordan

The Country & People of Jordan



Jordan, officially Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan, kingdom (1995 est. pop. 4,101,000), 37,737 sq mi (97,740 sq km), SW Asia, bordered by Israel (W), Syria (N), Iraq (NE), and Saudi Arabia (E, S). Amman is the capital and largest city. Pre-1967 Jordan fell into three main geographical regions: East Jordan, which encompasses about 92% of the country's land area; the Jordanian Highlands (highest point, 5,755 ft/1,754 m); and West Jordan (the West Bank, part of historic Palestine. In the Arab-Israeli War of 1967, Israel captured and occupied the West Bank, and Jordan has since renounced its claim to the area (see below). Jordan's economy has traditionally been based on agriculture, although less than 5% of the land is arable. The principal crops are vegetables, wheat, and citrus fruits; olives are grown for oil. Manufactures are limited to such items as foodstuffs, clothing, and cement, and there is some oil refining. Phosphate rock and potash are the only minerals produced in quantity. The annual cost of Jordan's imports far exceeds its earnings from exports. Aqaba, on the Gulf of Aqaba, is the only seaport. The inhabitants of Jordan are mostly of Arab descent (over half are of Palestinian descent), and Arabic is the official language, although English is also spoken among the higher socio-economic groups. About 95% of the people are Sunni Muslims. Under the 1952 constitution, the king is the most powerful figure in the country; he appoints a cabinet (headed by a prime minister). The bicameral parliament has been convened and dissolved by the king several times since 1974; the 1989 elections were the first in 22 years. Political parties were again permitted to field candidates in 1993.
History
This section deals primarily with the region east of the Jordan River; for the history of the area to the west, see Palestine. The region of present-day Jordan was conquered successively by the Seleucids (4th cent. BC), Romans (mid-1st cent. AD), and Muslim Arabs (7th. cent.). After the Crusaders captured (1099) Jerusalem, it became part of the Latin Kingdom of Jerusalem. The Ottoman Turks gained control in 1516, and what is now Jordan remained in the Ottoman Empire until World War I. In 1920 Transjordan (as it was then known) was made part of the British mandate of Palestine.
The country gained independence in 1946, and the name was changed (1949) to Jordan, reflecting its acquisition of land W of the Jordan R. during the Arab-Israeli War of 1948. Abdullah ibn Husain, a member of the Hashemite dynasty that headed Jordan since 1921, was assassinated in 1951. His grandson, Hussein I, became king the following year. Jordanian forces were routed by Israel in the 1967 war and Jordan lost the West Bank.
Growing hostility between Hussein and Palestinian guerrilla organizations operating in Jordan led to a brief civil war in 1970, and guerrilla bases were destroyed in 1971. Jordan renounced (1974; reaffirmed 1988) its claims to the West Bank in order to allow the Palestine Liberation Organization eventually to organize a state in this territory.
Jordan also joined most of the other Arab countries in opposing the 1979 peace treaty between Egypt and Israel. It was officially neutral in the Persian Gulf War, but many Jordanians supported Iraq. In 1991 Jordan began peace talks with Israel, and a treaty was signed in 1994.
Hussein continued to promote peace between Arabs and Israelis until his death in 1999; he was succeeded by his son Abdullah II who pledged to work toward a more open government and to ease restrictions on public expression. Although there has been some progress in terms of economic development, the country remains dependent on tourism, which has been hurt by its location between Israel and Iraq. Political liberalization has been slow in coming.
In 2001 parliament’s term expired without new elections being called; they were postponed out of fear that popular sympathy for the Palestinians in their renewed conflict with Israel would lead to a victory for the Islamic parties.
The June, 2003, parliamentary elections resulted in a majority for the king’s supporters; Islamists won 18 seats.
In Apr., 2006, Jordan accused Hamas of planning attacks against targets in Jordan, saying that it had detained militants and seized weapons that had come in from Syria.
The Nov., 2007, parliamentary elections resulted in sharp losses for the Islamists, who accused the government of fraud. The parliament was largely seen as ineffective, and two years later the king dissolved parliament and ordered preparations for a new election (but did not announce a date).

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