KING BRIEFS FOREIGN CHIEFS OF MISSION ON DOMESTIC

C O N F I D E N T I A L AMMAN 004770 SIPDIS SIPDIS E.O. 12958: DECL: 06/27/2016 TAGS: PGOV PTER KISL KPAL JO SUBJECT: KING BRIEFS FOREIGN CHIEFS OF MISSION ON DOMESTIC AND REGIONAL ISSUES REF: A. AMMAN 4651 ¶B. AMMAN 4396 ¶C. AMMAN 4245 ¶D. AMMAN 865 Classified By: CDA Daniel Rubinstein for Reasons 1.4 (b),(d) ¶1. (C) SUMMARY: King Abdullah convened chiefs of mission (COMs) from G8 and European Union nations on June 25 to discuss the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, the regional threat posed by Iran, the recent arrest of four Islamist MPs in Jordan, and domestic reform efforts. END SUMMARY. ISRAEL-PALESTINIAN CONFLICT -------------- ¶2. (C) King Abdullah warned COMs against mounting tensions between the GOI and Palestinians, and urged G8 and EU governments to work to prevent an escalation of violence. Strong international efforts, the King continued, were needed to bridge the gap between the two sides and to persuade Israel and the Palestinians - under the leadership of PA President Abu Mazen - to take trust-building measures aimed at re-starting peace talks. The King also called for the international community to help alleviate the worsening economic situation in the Palestinian territories by providing much needed humanitarian assistance. IRAN -------------- ¶3. (C) The King was candid in discussing the threat to the regime posed by the Iranian regime. He stated that Tehran was at the root of several regional ills, including instability in Iraq, Syrian belligerence, and the extremist agendas of both Hizballah and Hamas. To counter this threat, the King stated that moderate Arab states needed to confront Tehran collectively as a unified front. DOMESTIC ISLAMISTS -------------- ¶4. (C) King Abdullah defended the arrest of four MPs from the Islamic Action Front (IAF) for allegedly glorifying deceased terrorist Abu Musab al-Zarqawi (refs A-C). He asserted that the GOJ had to establish and enforce redlines now in order to prevent a bigger crisis triggered by Jordanian Islamists later. ¶5. (C) Denying that the GOJ was "against" the IAF or the Muslim Brotherhood (MB),King Abdullah said that the government was only trying to confront Islamists who promote takfiri ideology or justify terror. He hoped that the GOJ's arrest of the four MPs would force the MB and IAF to stake a position "on the right side." The King noted that the government's pursuit of this case ) though justified - might cause political tension in the immediate future. NOTE: On June 26, Jordan's State Security Court renewed the detention of the four MPs for another 15 days, which it stated was "a routine procedure" in cases where the questioning process is not complete. The IAF and MB, while distancing themselves from alleged statements made by IAF MP Mohammad Abu Fares, continue to refuse to issue an apology for their members' actions. More than 100 Muslim scholars from 44 countries meeting in Amman for an Islamic jurisprudence conference rejected Abu Fares' comments as unsupported by Islamic teachings. END NOTE. BUILDING A CONSTITUENCY FOR REFORM -------------- ¶6. (C) In order build public support for GOJ reform efforts, King Abdullah said he plans to organize a large meeting in July to engage civil society groups, as well as political and social leaders. The King said the goal is to energize reform proponents and to have them focus on priority issues highlighted in the National Agenda (ref D). He contemplated establishing up to 50 sub-groups to examine specific subjects, though he stressed this was not meant to "redo" the National Agenda. ¶7. (U) The following day, GOJ Spokesman Nasser Judeh announced at a press conference that a large-scale "national forum" would be held in July at the Dead Sea under the slogan "We are all Jordan." Judeh continued that the forum was a personal initiative of the King "to involve different sectors of the people and civil society" to discuss the future of Jordan. He added that details of the meeting would be forthcoming from the Royal Court. Visit Amman's Classified Web Site at http://www.state.sgov.gov/p/nea/amman/ Rubinstein