Jordan’s police on Friday reported that an officer and a non-commissioned officer were shot while “calming down saboteurs who had staged riots in the Al Hussainiya area of Ma’an, a city in southern Jordan, 218 kilometers southwest of the capital Amman, according to the official news agency Petra. But according to Reuters, the officer was dead and four others were injured.
Gunmen have shot dead the deputy police chief of Jordan’s Maan city as the country just struck by riots following the Kingdom’s resolution to increase fuel prices.
Footage from Amman. pic.twitter.com/JJWaGKcGY9— Majd Fahd ?? (@Syria_Protector) December 15, 2022
Jordan’s Public Security Directorate said two injured officers were taken to a hospital while the security forces are dealing with what it described as “outlaws” across the country, adding, “We will not allow them to implement their plans to undermine the security and stability of the homeland.”
Reuters reported Friday morning, citing witnesses, that a long convoy of armored vehicles entered the Ma’an neighborhood where the police officer was killed.
The Public Security Directorate warned citizens to “stay away from the criminal and subversive acts that some incite,” and urged Jordanians to avoid publishing information that wasn’t issued by it, saying it had identified “fabricated footage whose authors seek inciting violence.”
The Directorate stressed that it will continue its activities to protect the security of the homeland and its citizens and will strike with an iron hand anyone who tries to attack people or public property and threatens the security of the homeland and the citizen.”
Meanwhile, Jordan’s Minister of Government Communication Faisal Shboul said the latest meetings between the government and House Representatives were focused on the public financial situation.
Jordan’s annual budget is around $11 billion, and its revenues are around $9.5 billion. Its annual GDP is $45.24 billion.
The US Embassy in Amman has issued a Demonstration Alert, saying it is aware of reports of individuals protesting, burning tires, and throwing stones at vehicles on streets and highways in Jordan. Some highways, especially in the south, have experienced temporary closures. These incidents appear to be related to the ongoing truckers’ strike.
Jordanians protesting the high prices and the high cost of fuel Right now with violent riots, arson is also happening, the situation is still bad
Jordan ?? pic.twitter.com/S4owToog2j
— Ravi HTF (@raviagrawal3) December 15, 2022
The strike is paralyzing transportation across Jordan, most importantly from Aqaba port to other parts of the country. Among the strikers are the drivers of fuel trucks, which makes the situation completely untenable.
The truckers are protesting high fuel prices, and their strike is entering its third week. But King Abdullah II and his government cannot renege on their commitment to IMF not to go back to subsidized fuel prices in Jordan, which is dependent on oil and gas imports.
The strike started on Dec. 4 in Ma’an and was followed by strikes in other cities. The US embassy warned US government personnel to avoid large crowds and protests, and “move away from them as expeditiously as possible and turn around and seek an alternate route around any road closings.”
The strikers are planning to stage street protests in several cities on Friday, while Police have tightened security around the palace in Amman, where the protesters would naturally try to go.
