‘Wicked slander': Jordan queen, mother of detained prince says justice will prevail

Mother of Jordan’s former crown prince Hamzah, Queen Noor, on Sunday condemned the house detention of her son calling it a “wicked slander” as she received backing from the Middle Eastern countries, all of whom denounced the military action against Hamzah. The widow of the late King Hussein of Jordan took to her official Twitter handle saying, “Praying that truth and justice will prevail for all the innocent victims of this wicked slander. God bless and keep them safe." 

Hamzah bin Hussein, half brother to Jordanian King Abdullah II, was put under house arrest on April 3 by the armed forces in capital Amman as a part of a political crackdown against the dissent. He was warned by the Jordan military to "immediately halt" actions that destabilised the country's national security. When asked by the reporters, Army chief Yousef Huneiti did not comment on what those alleged actions were. 

In a videotaped statement leaked to British Broadcasting Corp., the former Jordan crown prince who was stripped of his title in 2014 rebuked the ruling government saying that it was “stymied in corruption, in nepotism, and in misrule". Prince Hamzah has been under the radar of the military for allegedly calling out the Jordanian government against human rights violations and launching slander against the nation's security forces.

Early Saturday, he leaked a video message stating that he was forcefully taken under arrest and wasn’t allowed to leave his home premises or meet any of his family members. He warned that his detention was a “part of the conspiracy", informing that the military personnel also arrested nearly 20 other prominent officials for what they called a "threat to the country." Sharif Hassan bin Zaid, a member of the royal family, and Bassem Awadallah, a prominent official confidant of the king who also became the minister of finance and an adviser to Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, were also placed under house arrest, a source on condition of anonymity disclosed to state-run Petra news agency. 

Gulf allies, US stand by King Abdullah II

In a statement published on the state news agency, Jordan's military denied reports of detention of the crown prince and instead said that a former minister, a member of the royal family, and unnamed others had been detained as troops were conducting "broader security investigation." Many ally countries, such as the Gulf nations and the US stood by King Abdullah II. 

"We are closely following the reports and in touch with Jordanian officials," US State Department spokesman Ned Price said. "King Abdullah is a key partner of the United States, and he has our full support." UAE also voiced support expressing “full solidarity” to the Jordan king on state's WAM news agency saying: “Any measures taken by King of Jordan, King Abdullah II to preserve the security and stability of Jordan and defuse any attempt that seeks to jeopardize either." Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) nations Qatar, Kuwait, Bahrain, and Oman also expressed support for Jordan's government. 

(Image Credit: AP)