TIME: Almanac 1995

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<text id=93CT1744> <link 90TT2248> <link 89TT3060> <link 89TT1215> <title> Jordan--History </title> <history> Compact ALMANAC--CIA Factbook Southwest Asia Jordan </history> <article> <source>CIA World Factbook</source> <hdr> History </hdr> <body> The land that became Jordan is part of the Fertile Crescent and has shared much of the glory and travail of that richly historical region. Its history began around 2000 B.C., when Semitic Amorites settled around the Jordan River in the area called Canaan. Subsequent invasions and conquests included those by the Hittites, Egyptians, Israelites, Assyrians, Babylonians, Persians, Greeks, Romans, Arab Muslims, Christian Crusaders, Mameluks, Ottoman Turks, and, finally, the British. At the end of World War I the territory now comprising Israel, Jordan, the West Bank, Gaza, and Jerusalem was awarded to the United Kingdom as the mandate for Palestine and Transjordan, part of the League of Nations mandate system. In 1922, the British divided the mandate, establishing the semi-autonomous Emirate of Transjordan ruled by the Hashemite Prince Abdullah and continuing the administration of Palestine under a British High Commissioner. The mandate over Transjordan ended on May 22, 1946, and on May 25, the country became the independent Hashemite Kingdom of Transjordan. It continued to have a special defense treaty relationship with the United Kingdom until 1957, when the treaty was dissolved by mutual consent. When the British mandate over Palestine ended on May 14, 1948, and the State of Israel was proclaimed, neighboring Arab states, including Transjordan, moved to assist Palestinian nationalists opposed to this action, which resulted in open warfare between the Arab states and the newly founded State of Israel. The armistice agreements of April 3, 1949, established armistice demarcation lines between Jordan and Israel, leaving Jordan in control of the West Bank. The agreements expressly provided that the armistice demarcation lines were without prejudice to future territorial settlements or boundary lines. In 1950, the country was renamed the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan to include those portions of Palestine annexed by King Abdullah. Jordan established three governorates on the West Bank: Nablus, al-Quds, and al-Khalil. While recognizing Jordanian administration over the West Bank, the United States maintained the position that ultimate sovereignty was subject to future settlement. Jordan signed a mutual defense pact in May 1967 with Egypt. It participated in the June 1967 hostilities between Israel and the Arab states of Syria, Egypt, and Iraq. The 6-day war resulted in extension of Israeli control as far as the Jordan River, including the Jordanian-controlled sector of Jerusalem. Jordan has been under martial law since 1967. The 1967 war brought a large increase in the number of Palestinians living in Jordan. Its Palestinian refugee population--700,000 in 1966--swelled by another 300,000 refugees and displaced persons from the West Bank. The period following the 1967 war saw an upsurge in the power and importance of Palestinian resistance elements (fedayeen) in Jordan. Differing with the Jordanian Government's policies, the heavily armed and highly motivated fedayeen constituted a growing threat to the sovereignty and security of the Hashemite state. Tensions between the government and the fedayeen increased until open fighting erupted in June 1970. Other Arab governments attempted to work out a peaceful solution, but by September continuing fedayeen actions in Jordan--including the destruction of three international airliners held hostage in the desert east of Amman--prompted the government to take action to regain complete control over its territory and all the peoples living there. Heavy fighting broke out in which a Syrian tank force (camouflaged as a Palestinian force) initially took up positions in northern Jordan in support of the fedayeen. By September 22, Arab foreign ministers meeting at Cairo had arranged a cease-fire beginning the following day. Sporadic violence continued, however until Jordanian forces won a decisive victory over the fedayeen in July 1971, expelling them from the country. Since then, the fedayeen have not presented a threat to the Jordanian Government. No fighting occurred along the Jordan River cease-fire line during the October 1973 war. However, Jordan sent a brigade to Syria, where it engaged in combat with Israeli units in Syrian territory. Current Political Conditions King Hussein is the central figure in Jordan. Since his reign began in 1953, he has weathered a series of difficult crises and has always had strong and loyal support from the Jordan Arab Army, the former Arab Legion. Principal political events during the period 1972-88 include the promulgation by King Hussein of his United Arab Kingdom Plan in March 1972, and a proposal for a federal Jordan in which the Palestinians were to enjoy a large measure of autonomy in the West Bank. The plan was to be implemented following Israeli withdrawal from the West Bank. Following October 1974 Arab summit conference at Rabat, at which the Arab representatives recognized the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) as the "sole legitimate representative of the Palestinian people," the Jordanian Government was obliged to adjust its traditional role as representative of Palestinians residing on the West Bank. Despite these developments, the Amman government has retained considerable ties with the West Bank. The government continues to provide funds to West Bank municipalities, to pay salaries to West Bank officials and teachers who were on its payroll prior to 1967, and to provide financial support, through its West Bank Development Program, for certain West Bank projects. Many West Bank leaders have traveled to Amman for consultations with Jordanian Government officials. While the reconvening of parliament in January 1984 was primarily in response to internal pressure for wider participation in government, the action contradicted the continued recognition of the PLO as the sole legitimate representative of the Palestinian people. The restored Palestinian representation from the West Bank was denounced by both Yasir Arafat and Syria as a challenge to the PLO's claim as the sole legitimate representative of the Palestinians, and as an attempt to bypass the PLO. The United states welcomed the country's return to parliamentary rule as a timely move that could help in dealing with the Palestinian issue. Moreover, the routine functioning of an elected deliberative body was taken as a reassuring sign of broader participation in the democratic process. In April 1985, King Hussein appointed Zaid Rifa'i as the new prime minister and named a new cabinet perceived to reflect his desire to address a number of important domestic and foreign policy concerns. The appointment of respected economic experts and an increase in the number of Palestinians in the government reflected his policy agenda of renewing dialogue with Arafat and reversing the recent economic downturn. Relations between King Hussein and the PLO were highlighted during 1985-87, first by the PLO's agreement in February 1985 to assist Hussein in his peace efforts, and then its subsequent refusal to respond to Hussein's urgings to accept UN Security Council resolutions 242 and 338 and renounce the use of violence. In summer 1986, King Hussein closed the offices of Fatah, Arafat's PLO faction, and expelled key Arafat aide Abu Jihad. During the meeting of the Palestine National Conference in Algiers in early 1987, the PLO formally renounced its 1985 agreement with Jordan. This, coupled with Arafat's embrace of radical elements attending the conference, served to exacerbate the estrangement between Hussein and the PLO leader. The November 1987 Arab League summit in Amman was a major victory for Hussein's diplomatic efforts. Arab unity in dealing with the gulf war and other agreements crowned 18 months of the King's personal diplomacy within the Arab camp. Most observers scored the summit as a major triumph for him. Source: U.S. Department of State, Bureau of Public Affairs, June 1988. </body> </article> </text>