Iraqi official: We will not allow any party to violate Jordan’s sovereignty
In conjunction with the announcement of the group calling itself the “Islamic Resistance in Iraq” targeting the air base in Israel, the pro-Iranian “Kata’ib Hezbollah” faction said that it “pledges to equip Jordanian fighters with weapons, launchers and tactical missiles,” but an Iraqi official “ruled out this scenario from occurring.” Basis”.
The security official of the Hezbollah Brigades, known as “Abu Ali Al-Askari,” announced on the Telegram channel that “the Islamic resistance in Iraq has prepared its equipment to equip the resistance in Jordan to meet the needs of 12,000 fighters with light and medium weapons, anti-armor launchers, and tactical missiles.” And millions of ammunition and tons of explosives, so that we can be one hand to defend our Palestinian brothers,” he said.
The statements of the spokesman for the pro-Iranian Iraqi faction came in conjunction with the return of protests in Jordan in front of the Israeli embassy in the Jordanian capital, Amman, with larger crowds, remarkable organization, high ceilings, and costly demands, despite Jordan’s official redoubling of its pressing diplomatic efforts towards an immediate ceasefire and the introduction of humanitarian and relief aid. .
Al-Askari said: “We are ready to begin preparations, and enough of the Hamas or Islamic Jihad movement for that. Let us begin first by cutting off the land road that reaches Israel.”
It is noteworthy that one of the demands of the street in its daily protests is to stop the “land bridge” that supplies Israel with goods and vegetables, while the government confirmed that nothing has changed in 25 years on the border with the occupying state, and the movement of goods and services at the crossings is from Jordanian merchants linked to contracts with Israel. .
In the Jordanian capital, Amman, Arab contacts continue to discuss developments in the war in Gaza, and yesterday, Monday, discussions were held between Jordanian King Abdullah II and Egyptian President Abdel Fattah Al-Sisi, who stressed “the necessity of an immediate ceasefire in Gaza.”
A photo published by the Jordanian army on March 31 of humanitarian aid being airdropped over the northern Gaza Strip (AFP)
No evidence of a threat
The Iraqi Foreign Ministry did not comment on the escalation of the Hezbollah Brigades, at a time when Iraqi Prime Minister Muhammad Shia al-Sudani is preparing for an important visit to the United States of America to hold a summit with US President Joe Biden.
However, an Iraqi official told Asharq Al-Awsat that “the reality does not allow any Iraqi party to arm groups outside the country to carry out suspicious movements,” and stressed that “Iraq will not allow the sovereignty of its brotherly neighbor to be violated.”
The official, who requested to remain anonymous, said, “There is no evidence on the ground indicating the possibility of arming groups in Jordan.” He added: “The evidence indicates the opposite, and there is no intelligence information in this regard, whether from Iraqi, regional or international authorities.”
Iraqi Foreign Minister Fuad Hussein expressed doubts about what the Iraqi factions announced about targeting targets inside Israel.
In remarkable statements during his recent visit to Washington to arrange the Sudanese visit’s schedule, Hussein said in an interview with Voice of America radio, “The use of weapons inside Iraq requires a decision from the Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces, and no one should make a decision on his own to launch A war on this side or that.”
The Iraqi minister stressed that “the war decision is issued exclusively by the Iraqi Council of Representatives, and is not a personal decision.”
Part of the protests in the Jordanian capital, Amman (AFP)
Media review
In Jordan, the security institutions assessed the Iraqi faction’s announcement as “merely a media show,” which “would only create an atmosphere of tension in the region.”
A Jordanian government source told Asharq Al-Awsat that his country “recently thwarted multiple attempts and plans by active armed organizations on the border with Iraq,” and that the Jordanian army has strengthened its defensive capabilities in the past few years, to confront “threats from active Iranian arms on the border.” The northern border is with Syria and the eastern border is with Iraq.
The source revealed that “Iraqi militias affiliated with Iran have sought since October 7 to carry out infiltration operations across the Jordanian border with the aim of (popular advance) to support the Palestinian resistance, but the Jordanian army was able to thwart many of these attempts.”
Amman accuses Tehran of seeking to threaten Jordanian security, through continuous attempts to destabilize it through its tools in neighboring countries.
Local security sources confirmed that “the slogans chanted by demonstrators in the night demonstrations near the Israeli embassy are sponsored by Iran, came under the guidance of Hamas leaders abroad, and are carried out by its wings in the unlicensed Muslim Brotherhood organization in the country.”
Violating the sovereignty of a neighboring country
Ihsan Al-Shammari, head of the Center for Political Thinking, said in an interview with Asharq Al-Awsat that the Hezbollah Brigades’ announcement comes “in the context of pressure on the allies of the United States of America in the region based on the existence of a strategic relationship with Jordan.” He pointed out that “The armed factions are trying to distract the Americans by opening a tension front inside Jordan.”
Al-Shammari added, “The factions’ movements are a direct intervention in the affairs of an independent neighboring state, and coincide with tension taking place in the Jordanian street, which may mean that there is a thread linking these events with the project of unifying the arenas adopted by the resistance.”
Al-Shammari explained that “ambiguity surrounds the Phalange’s talk about delivering these weapons,” and while he doubted the possibility of this scenario occurring, he saw it as “in any case a violation of international laws that could affect the relationship between the two countries.”
Al-Shammari believed that these incidents would encourage the security authorities in Amman and Baghdad to raise the level of security alert on the border strip between the two countries.
Eilat attack
Earlier, the “Islamic Resistance” group in Iraq said, on Tuesday, that it had targeted the Israeli Tal Nof base with drones.
She added, in a statement on a Telegram channel, that she would continue her attacks on Israel in response to the targeting of Palestinian civilians in Gaza.
The Israeli army said that a “suspicious air target” fell inside Jordanian territory near the border with Israel, after local media reported that a drone crashed in an open area.
A picture of a missile published by the “Islamic Resistance in Iraq” on its channel via “Telegram”
The army said, in a statement, that the target fell to the northeast of the port of Eilat on the Red Sea, which was subjected to repeated attacks by drones and missiles by the Yemeni Houthi group during the Gaza war that has been ongoing for approximately six months.
The army stated that a building at the Eilat Naval Base was bombed by an object fired from the eastern direction at Israel, indicating that it came from Iraq.
In a separate context, the Iraqi Foreign Ministry condemned the Israeli attack on the Iranian embassy in Damascus, and said in a statement on Tuesday that “this attack represents a clear and flagrant violation of international law and Syrian sovereignty,” and warned of “the danger of compromising the security of diplomatic missions that have diplomatic immunity under international laws.”
2024-04-02 16:33:37
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