Jordan: a small nation in an unenviable place

[davidbfpo]

Via Twitter fromAlSuraEnglish as 'breaking':

King of Jordan dismisses his 3 brothers; Faisal, Ali and Talal from Jordanian army command after evidence of them contacting Saudi leaders Mohammad bin Salman and Mohammad bin Zayed to formulate a coup against him. All 3 brothers are now under house arrest.

(Added) AlSura's short web story ends with:

The Jordanian military has maintained that the brothers and cousin were retired early as part of the military changes to the Jordanian Army and have refused to comment further on the news that they have communications with Saudi and Emirati leaders. The brothers and cousin have not been seen since the house arrest.

Link:http://al-sura.com/jordans-king-arre...audi-led-coup/

Jane's reports the dismissals were a few days ago, citing very different reasons:

.. three senior ranking princes are to retire as part of a wider effort to professionalise the country’s military.

Link:http://www.janes.com/article/76705/j...-restructuring

Nothing elsewhere so far on the King's statement.

An expert abroad via Twitter:

I'm not convinced at all that a Saudi-led coup was averted in #Jordan as some rumours have it. My sources in Jordan agree. I advise caution

[davidbfpo]

The Jerusalem Post's response:

Al-Sura, an independent media platform for citizen journalists, tweeted speculation that Prince Feisal, Prince Ali and Prince Talal had been in contact with Saudi leaders to formulate a coup against Abdullah.

Jordanian media have not yet addressed such speculation.

Link:http://www.jpost.com/Breaking-News/J...command-521372

[CrowBat]

Reaction by Jane's is no surprise: in specific cases they 'must' react in specific ways.

[davidbfpo]

An update within a broader regional article and what happens when the price of bread goes up? No, not rejoicing, often it is public protest:

Jordan has economic troubles of its own that more than match Russia's. A decrease in financial support from Gulf states means the authorities are facing a $700 million budget deficit, and have taken the deeply unpopular route of raising taxes on basic foodstuffs, including bread, by 50-100%.

Link:https://www.opendemocracy.net/paul-r...s-new-dynamic?

[davidbfpo]

An IISS commentary; sub-titled:

Jordan has always been torn between regional threats and internal socio-economic pressures. Alongside its concerns over the Syria crisis and the Israel–Palestine conflict, a major challenge facing Jordan is the need to reinvigorate its domestic economy.

Link:https://www.iiss.org/blogs/analysis/...icy-challenges