JORDANIANS CONDEMN SHARM AL-SHEIKH BOMBINGS

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 AMMAN 005913

SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: DECL: 07/25/2015
TAGS: PTER PGOV ASEC PREL KPAO ECON EG JO
SUBJECT: JORDANIANS CONDEMN SHARM AL-SHEIKH BOMBINGS

REF: AMMAN 5859

Classified By: Acting DCM Christopher Henzel for reasons 1.4 (b) and (d
)


1. (U) SUMMARY: King Abdullah led Jordan's public
condemnation of the July 23 bombings in Sharm al-Sheikh,
calling the attacks "barbaric" acts of terrorism that have no
grounding in Islam. He telephoned President Mubarak to
express Jordan's solidarity with Egypt, as ordinary
Jordanians and the media expressed their shock at the
senselessness of the attacks. Meanwhile, Jordan's security
services stepped up security at tourist attractions and
hotels throughout the country. END SUMMARY.


2. (U) King Abdullah on July 23 condemned the terrorist
attacks in Sharm al-Sheikh as "barbaric," and vowed no let up
in the fight against terrorism. He also telephoned and sent
a cable to Egyptian President Mubarak, reiterating Jordan's
support for Egypt "under the current difficult
circumstances," according to Jordan's official news agency
Petra. Meanwhile, PM Badran telephoned his Egyptian
counterpart Ahmad Nazif to express his condolences and pledge
Jordan's support. Deputy PM and government spokesperson
Marwan Muasher also issued a statement condemning the attacks.


3. (U) The bombings received extensive front-page coverage
in all local papers on July 24, and lead editorials and
commentaries almost exclusively focused on the carnage. The
press focused on such attacks' incompatibility with Islam,
and called on the world, especially Arabs and Muslims, to
speak out clearly and forcefully against terrorism (reftel).
Chief editor of Arabic daily al-Ghad called on "Arabs and
Muslims to express their rejection and condemnation of these
acts publicly, and by various means, starting with
demonstrations by millions in Arab capitals from Amman to
Rabat, and from Damascus to Cairo, in a popular action that
says to terrorists: 'You are not of us, nor of our faith, and
our cases are innocent of your acts.'"


4. (C) The fact that the bombings caused mainly Egyptian
casualties -- in a place where many Jordanians vacation --
has horrified Jordan. Noting that the bombings in Egypt
followed closely the attacks in London, and against the
backdrop of ongoing violence in Iraq, Lebanon and Israel,
some worry it is the prelude to a larger and more frightening
period of violence in the region. University of Jordan
political science professor Mohammad Kheir Mustafa commented
that what happened in Sharm was no less dangerous than what
happened in London, and means that the "hand of terrorism can
reach anywhere." Reflecting widespread fears, he speculated
that Jordan might be one of the coming targets. President
of Mu'ta University Suleiman Arabiyat said such seemingly
senseless and random violence makes positive movement on the
peace process and towards stabilizing Iraq that much more
critical. Director of al-Quds Center for Political Studies
Ureib al-Rintawi termed the attacks as a "fatal blow" to
Egypt's economy and representative of the failure of the war
on terrorism. The Sharm and London attacks show that there
is a new generation of terrorists who have no criminal
record, proving "we will live long" with this phenomenon.


5. (C) Reflecting the high threat environment and real
concern about attacks here, Jordan's Public Security
Directorate (PSD) has heightened security at Jordan's hotels,
shopping malls, and tourist sites, including those in Amman,
Aqaba, the Dead Sea, and Petra. Post security contacts
report that more security checkpoints have been set up around
tourist sites to better screen persons entering those sites.
The Jerash Cultural Festival and the Global Village are
receiving special security attention with the deployment of
explosive detection dogs and additional security personnel.
Public Security Director (PSD) General Muhammad Majid
al-Eitan reviewed with Charge on July 25 measures taken in
the wake of the bombings. Eitan, on secondment from the JAF
and one of the Jordanian military's ablest officers, said
stepped-up measures include both fixed and mobile patrols at
all of Jordan's premier hotels and tourist sites. Aqaba
itself he described as "sealed off" and well penetrated by
intelligence officers. He had personally reviewed the
measures at Amman-area hotels and embassies, often making
late-night spot inspections, sometimes in plainclothes, to
satisfy himself on the state of readiness. He termed the
threat of terrorist attacks in Jordan as real, although no
new, specific threat information related to westerners had
developed. His main concern was that the highly visible
security precautions at hotels, tourist sites, and embassies
would push terrorists to look at even softer targets, with
Amman-area shopping malls being a considerable preoccupation.
Eitan said he had visited Taba and Sharm al-Sheikh recently,
and given the weak security measures in place, was not
surprised by the attacks. He had repeatedly warned his
Egyptian counterpart that there were insufficient numbers of
uniformed police at hotels and in the town. He believed they
provided an essential deterrent that plainclothes police do
not provide.

No Economic Impact Yet

6. (U) Officials confirmed that tourist activity in the Red
Sea port and resort town of Aqaba (and the ferry transport
service between Aqaba and Nweibeh in Egypt) were so far
unaffected by the bombings. Hotels in Aqaba -- which local
boosters hope to make the "Sharm al-Sheikh of Jordan"--
continue to report high occupancy rates, according to Aqaba
Special Economic Zone Authority chief commissioner Nader
Dahabi, who said no reservations for foreign vacationers had
been canceled.
Please visit Embassy Amman's classified web site at
http://www.state.sgov/p/nea/amman/ or access the site through
the Department of State's SIPRNET home page.
HALE