AMMAN Ñ Jordan has expressed concern over rising insurgency fueled
by help from such neighbors as Iraq and the Palestinians.
Jordanian officials said two officers from the Fatah movement headed by
Palestinian Authority Chairman Yasser Arafat have been arrested on charges
of planning attacks on Israel from the Hashemite kingdom.
It was the first time Fatah officers were said to have been arrested in
Jordan during the 18-month-old war against Israel. Jordanian authorities had
captured Fatah insurgents prior to the Israeli-Palestinian war who were
charged with smuggling weapons from the kingdom to the West Bank.
Diplomatic sources in Amman said Jordan is being used as a route for
weapons smuggling to the PA from Lebanon, Syria, Iraq and
Iran. They said Hizbullah has been a major smuggler and several agents have
been detained.
The sources said Jordan has encountered rising tension in the kingdom
amid the escalation of the Israeli-Palestinian war. Palestinian refugees and
university students have been defying a year-old ban against political
demonstrations.
The students and refugees have been holding daily demonstrations in the
capital Amman in support of the Palestinians and Iraq. Suspected protest
organizers have been arrested in the Baqa camp.
On Tuesday, Jordanian officials said the government agreed to lift the
ban on demonstrations. Authorities allowed hundreds of women to demonstrate
in support of the Palestinians in Amman. At the same time, Prime Minister
Ali Abu Ragheb has been discussing demands by a coalition of opposition
groups to stage a mass protest against Israel.
Jordanian officials refused to confirm reports that Iraqi troops have
been redeployed near the Jordanian border. On Tuesday, Iraqi opposition
sources said an
undetermined number of Iraqi troops have arrived at the Jordanian border
from their positions in northern Iraq. The sources said the redeployment
began over the weekend.
