For the first time in five years the plane of Jordan’s King Abdullah II will land in Ramallah on Monday to conduct a visit described by observers as sensitive in terms of timing and objectives in light of the recent crisis at Al-Aqsa Mosque and its repercussions most notably the crisis following the shooting of two Jordanian nationals at the Israeli embassy in Jordan.
This visit also comes at a time the Palestinian and Jordanian official role has declined in light of the success of the people of Occupied Jerusalem to enforce their will against the Israeli occupation.
Political analysts interviewed by the PIC did not count on this visit. Some of them said that the visit was aimed at improving the Palestinian-Jordanian relationship as part of the public relations campaign of Jordan. The actual decision is not in the hands of either party they added.
Is the visit important?
Political analyst Wissam Afifah the editor of Al-Resalah newspaper said the importance of the visit lies in its timing following Al-Aqsa Mosque crisis and the humiliation suffered by the Palestinian Authority and Jordan and their moral loss at a time Jerusalemites showed unprecedented steadfastness while confronting the Israeli occupation in the city.
Analyst Ahmed Awad asserts that the king’s visit comes at an important time after the deterioration of the relationship with Israel after what happened at Al-Aqsa and the shooting at the Israeli Embassy in Jordan and the occupation’s denial of its agreements with Jordan and the peace process with the Palestinian Authority.
Professor of political science Abdul Sattar Qassem described the visit as insignificant explaining that the King of Jordan and the President of the Palestinian Authority cannot take decisions of their own. He referred to what happened at Al-Aqsa Mosque as well as the shooting at the Israeli Embassy in Amman.
The future of the PA
Analyst Afifah did not rule out that Jordan and its king have concerns about the future of the PA and the West Bank after the possible departure of Abbas from the political scene in light of the deterioration of his health pointing out that the visit might focus on the future of the Palestinian political scene after Abbas.
Afifah and Qassem agreed that Jordan is concerned that instability might follow Abbas’s departure with the possible spread of chaos and insecurity which would have its impact on Jordan and increase its burdens.
Awad stressed that the visit comes after the King of Jordan felt let down and disappointed and even deceived by Israel in light of what happened at the Israeli Embassy in Amman indicating that the visit gives a message to the Israeli occupation of the unity of the Jordanian and Palestinian visions on issues related to Jerusalem.
According to media sources a helicopter carrying the King of Jordan will land in the headquarters of the PA in Ramallah. It will be one of the rare visits that the King excludes Israel from his visits to Palestine.
Analyst Awad concluded that this visit comes in order to improve the bilateral relations. He stressed that the meeting will try to cover any gap in the Palestinian-Jordanian relationship following the recent events at Al-Aqsa.
Interests
Afifah asserts that the purpose of the visit is purely interest-related. Abbas’s possible departure would affect the political scene in the West Bank that might lead to consequences on Jordan’s geographic demographic and political security.
Afifah and Qassem believe that the two leaders have no ability to take decisions on the situation in Jordan or the West Bank. These decisions they added is in the hands of Israel and the United States noting that any meeting or agreement between both leaders would have no effect on the ground.
