ISLAMISTS RENEW DEMANDS TO CANCEL VISIT OF ISRAELI

C O N F I D E N T I A L AMMAN 000540 SIPDIS E.O. 12958: DECL: 01/21/2014 TAGS: PGOV PREL KISL IS JO SUBJECT: ISLAMISTS RENEW DEMANDS TO CANCEL VISIT OF ISRAELI FM SHALOM REF: A. AMMAN 459 ¶B. AMMAN 381 Classified By: Ambassador Edward W. Gnehm for Reasons 1.5 (b),(d) ¶1. (U) In a statement released to the press January 20, the Jordanian Islamic Action Front (IAF),the political wing of the Muslim Brotherhood, urged the GOJ to cancel the upcoming visit to Jordan of Israeli Foreign Minister Shalom. The statement read, in part, that, "The announcement of a visit by terrorist Silvan Shalom, the foreign minister of the Zionist entity, to Amman is a provocation for every Jordanian. We ask the government . . . to cancel this visit as a step towards closing the den of terrorists (the Israeli embassy) in Amman." ¶2. (U) The statement further denounced the "brazen threats" made against Jordan by Israeli Prime Minister Sharon on January 19, apparently referring to Sharon's statements to the Knesset that Jordan had "much to lose" if it pursued its vigorous opposition to the Israeli separation wall before the International Court of Justice (see ref a). ¶3. (C) Foreign Minister Marwan Muasher told the Ambassador on January 21 that he had been accused of treason during a session of the Parliament that day because he was prepared to receive Shalom in Amman. Muasher said he had responded forcefully to these allegations and pointed out the importance to Jordan of its relations with Israel. ¶4. (C) COMMENT: The IAF has previously called for the cancellation of Shalom's visit (see ref b),but Sharon's statements criticizing Jordan for its legal opposition to the wall, as well as those of Likud hard-liners calling for the transfer of Palestinians, have added fuel to their fire. We can expect the IAF to continue to capitalize on the current strain in Jordanian-Israeli relations in pursuing their campaign to sever ties between the two countries. End Comment. Visit Embassy Amman's classified web site at http://www.state.sgov.gov/p/nea/amman or access the site through the State Department's SIPRNET home page. GNEHM