Jordan

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المملكة الأردنّيّة الهاشميّة
Al Mamlakah al Urdunnīyah al Hāshimīyah

File:600px-Flag of Jordan.png File:Hashemitearms.jpg Flag of Jordan Coat of Arms of Jordan
Location of Jordan
Official language	Arabic
Capital	Amman
King	Abdullah II
Prime minister	Marouf al-Bakhit
Area  - Total	Ranked 111th 92,300 km²
Population  - Total (2005 est.)  - Density	Ranked 104th 5,729,732 62/km²
Independence	1946
National anthem	As-Salam al-malaki al-Urduni (Long Live the King of Jordan)
Currency	Jordanian dinar
Time zone	Universal Time +2
Internet TLD	.jo
Country calling code	962

The Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan, commonly called Jordan, is an Arab country in the Middle East. It is bordered by Syria to the north, Iraq to the northeast, Saudi Arabia to the east and south, and Israel and the West Bank to the west. It shares with Israel the coastlines of the Gulf of Aqaba and the Dead Sea. Jordan's principal religion is Islam, and its main language is Arabic.

The desert that comprises much of Jordanian territory is essentially the same desert that dominates Saudi Arabia. Most of the populace, though, resides in or near the capital, Amman. The size of the country, at more than 90,000 km², is close to that of Maine, but the population, under six million, is similar to Missouri's.

Geography

Jordan consists mostly of arid desert plateau in the east, with Highland area in the west. The Great Rift Valley of the Jordan River separates Jordan and Israel. The highest point in the country is Jabal Ram, while the lowest is the Dead Sea. Jordan is considered to be part of the "Cradle of Humanity."

Besides Amman, located in the country's northwest, major cities include Irbid and Zarqa, both in the north. The hilly northwest is a farming region known in biblical times as Gilead.

Due to the desert, the climate in Jordan is dry and hot. However, the western part of the country receives greater precipitation during the rainy season that lasts from November through April.

Jordan has one of the world's shortest national coastlines, 26 km at the Gulf of Aqaba.

History

The land that became present-day Jordan forms part of the history-rich Fertile Crescent region. Its known history began around 2000 B.C.E., when Semitic Amorites settled around the Jordan River in the area called Canaan. Subsequent invaders and settlers included Hittites, Egyptians, Israelites, Assyrians, Babylonians, Persians, Greeks, Romans, Byzantines, Arab Muslims, Christian Crusaders, Mameluks, Ottoman Turks, and, finally, the British. At the end of World War I, the territory now comprising Israel, Jordan, the West Bank, the Gaza Strip, and Jerusalem was awarded to the United Kingdom by the League of Nations as the mandate for Palestine. In 1922, in an attempt to assuage Arab anger resulting from the Balfour Declaration, with the approval of the League of Nations, the British created the semi-autonomous Arab Emirate of Transjordan in all Palestinian territory east of the Jordan River. The British installed the Hashemite Prince Abdullah I while continuing the administration of Palestine and Transjordan under a single British high commissioner. The mandate over Transjordan ended in 1946, and the country became the independent Hashemite Kingdom of Transjordan. It ended its special defense treaty relationship with the U.K. in 1957.

Transjordan opposed the creation of Israel in 1948 and took part in the warfare between the Arab states and the newly founded state of Israel. The armistice agreements of 1949 left Jordan in control of the West Bank and provided that the armistice demarcation lines be without prejudice to future territorial settlements or boundary lines.

In 1950, Transjordan annexed the West Bank, and the country was renamed the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan to reflect this. The annexation was recognised only by Britain.

Jordan signed a mutual defense pact in May 1967 with Egypt, and it participated in the Six Day War the next month against Israel along with Syria, Egypt, and Iraq. During the war, Jordan lost its control of the West Bank and all of Jerusalem. In 1988, Jordan renounced all claims to the West Bank but retained an administrative role pending a final settlement, and its 1994 treaty with Israel allowed for a continuing Jordanian role in Muslim and Christian holy places in Jerusalem. The international community, as represented in the United Nations, considers the West Bank to be territory occupied by Israel and believes that its final status should be determined through direct negotiations among the parties concerned on the basis of UN Security Council resolutions.

The 1967 war led to a dramatic increase in the number of Palestinians, especially from the West Bank, living in Jordan. Its Palestinian refugee population – 700,000 in 1966 – grew by another 300,000 from the West Bank. The period following the 1967 war saw an upsurge in the power and importance of Palestinian resistance elements (fedayeen) in Jordan. The heavily armed fedayeen constituted a growing threat to the sovereignty and security of the Hashemite state, and open fighting erupted in June 1970. The battle in which Palestinian fighters from various Palestinian Liberation Organization (PLO) groups were expelled from Jordan is commonly known as Black September.

Other Arab governments attempted to work out a peaceful solution, but by September, continuing fedayeen actions in Jordan – including the destruction of three international airliners hijacked by the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine and held in the desert east of Amman – prompted the government to take action to regain control over its territory and population. In the ensuing heavy fighting, a Syrian tank force took up positions in northern Jordan to support the fedayeen but subsequently retreated. By 22 September, Arab foreign ministers meeting at Cairo had arranged a cease-fire beginning the following day. Sporadic violence continued, however, until Jordanian forces led by Habis Al-Majali won a decisive victory over the fedayeen in July 1971, expelling them from the country.

At the Rabat summit conference in 1974, Jordan agreed, along with the rest of the Arab League, that the PLO was the "sole legitimate representative of the Palestinian people," thereby relinquishing to that organization its role as representative of the West Bank Palestinians.

No fighting occurred along the 1967 Jordan River cease-fire line during the Yom Kippur War of 1973, but Jordan sent a brigade to Syria to fight Israeli units on Syrian territory. Jordan did not participate in the Gulf War of 1990-91. In 1991, Jordan agreed, along with Syria, Lebanon, and Palestinian representatives, to participate in direct peace negotiations with Israel sponsored by the U.S. and Russia. It negotiated an end to hostilities with Israel and signed a declaration to that effect in July 1994. As a result, an Israeli-Jordanian peace treaty was concluded that October. Following the outbreak of Israeli-Palestinian fighting in 2000, the Jordanian government offered its good offices to both parties. Jordan has since sought to remain at peace with all of its neighbors.

In 2005, Jordan experienced three simultaneous bombings at hotels in Amman. At least 57 people died and 115 were wounded. Al-Qaeda in Iraq, a group led by native Jordanian Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, claimed responsibility.

Politics

Map of Jordan

Jordan is a constitutional monarchy, with executive authority is vested in the king and his council of ministers. Legislative power rests in the bicameral national assembly.

King Hussein ruled Jordan from 1953 to 1999, surviving a number of challenges to his rule, drawing on the loyalty of his military, and serving as a symbol of unity and stability for both the East Bank and Palestinian communities in Jordan. Hussein ended martial law in 1991 and legalized political parties the next year.

King Abdullah II succeeded his father Hussein following the latter's death in 1999. Abdullah moved quickly to reaffirm Jordan's peace treaty with Israel and its relations with the U.S. During his first year in power, he refocused the government's agenda on economic reform.

Jordan's continuing structural economic difficulties, burgeoning population, and more open political environment led to the emergence of a variety of political parties. Moving toward greater independence, Jordan's parliament has investigated corruption charges against several regime figures and has become the major forum in which differing political views, including those of political Islamists, are expressed. While Abdullah remains the ultimate authority in Jordan, the parliament plays an important role.

Economy

(((Consider eliminating a lot of this))) Jordan is a small country with limited natural resources. The country is currently exploring ways to expand its limited water supply and use its existing water resources more efficiently, including through regional cooperation. Jordan also depends on external sources for the majority of its energy requirements. During the 1990s, its crude petroleum needs were met through imports from neighboring Iraq. Since early 2003, oil has been provided by some Gulf Cooperation Council member countries. In addition, a natural gas pipeline from Egypt to the southern port city of Aqaba was completed that year. The government plans to extend this pipeline north to the Amman area and beyond. Since 2000, exports of light manufactured products, principally textiles and garments manufactured in the Qualifying Industrial Zones (QIZs) that enter the U.S. tariff- and quota-free, have been driving economic growth. Jordan exported $6.9 million in goods to the U.S. in 1997, when two-way trade was $395 million; it exported $661 million in 2002 with two-way trade at $1.05 billion. Similar growth in exports to the U.S. under the bilateral Free Trade Agreement that went into effect in 2001, to the European Union under the bilateral Association Agreement, and to countries in the region, holds considerable promise for diversifying Jordan's economy away from its traditional reliance on exports of phosphates and potash, overseas remittances, and foreign aid. The government has emphasized the information-technology and tourism sectors as other promising growth sectors. The low tax and low regulation Aqaba Special Economic Zone (ASEZ) is considered a model of a government-provided framework for private sector-led economic growth.

The Free Trade Agreement (FTA) with the U.S. isw scheduled to phase out duties on nearly all goods and services by 2010. The agreement also provides for more open markets in communications, construction, finance, health, transportation, and services, as well as strict application of international standards for the protection of intellectual property. In 1996, Jordan and the U.S. signed a civil aviation agreement that provides for "open skies" between the two countries, and a U.S.-Jordan treaty for the protection and encouragement of bilateral investment entered into force in 2003.

Jordan is classified by the World Bank as a "lower middle income country." The per capita GDP was approximately $1,817 for 2003, and 14.5% of the economically active population, on average, was unemployed that year. Education and literacy rates and measures of social well-being are relatively high compared to other countries with similar incomes. Jordan's population growth rate is high, but has declined in recent years, to approximately 2.8%. One of the most important factors in the government’s efforts to improve the well-being of its citizens is the macroeconomic stability that has been achieved since the 1990s. Rates of price inflation are low, at 2.3% in 2003, and the currency has been stable with an exchange rate fixed to the U.S. dollar since 1995.

While pursuing economic reform and increased trade, Jordan's economy will continue to be vulnerable to external shocks and regional unrest. Without calm in the region, economic growth seems destined to stay below its potential.

Foreign relations

Jordan has consistently followed a pro-Western foreign policy and traditionally has had close relations with the U.S. and the U.K. These relations were damaged by Jordan's neutrality and maintaining relations with Iraq during the Gulf War. Although the government of Jordan stated its opposition to the Iraqi occupation of Kuwait, popular support for Iraq was driven by Jordan's Palestinian community, which favored [Saddam Hussein]] as a champion against Western supporters of Israel.

Following the Gulf War, Jordan largely restored its relations with Western countries through its participation in the Middle East peace process and enforcement of UN sanctions against Iraq. Relations between Jordan and the Gulf countries improved substantially after King Hussein's death. Following the fall of the Iraqi regime in 2003, Jordan has played a pivotal role in supporting the restoration of stability and security to Iraq. Jordan signed a memorandum of understanding with the Coalition Provisional Authority in Iraq to facilitate the training of up to 30,000 Iraqi police cadets at a Jordanian facility.

Jordan signed a nonbelligerency agreement with Israel in Washington in 1994. The U.S. has participated with Jordan and Israel in trilateral development discussions in which key issues have been water-sharing and security, cooperation on Jordan Rift Valley development, infrastructure projects, and trade, finance, and banking issues. Jordan also participates in the multilateral peace talks.

Since the outbreak of the Intifadah in 2000, Jordan has worked hard, in a variety of fora, to maintain lines of communication between the Israelis and the Palestinians to counsel moderation and to return the parties to negotiations of outstanding permanent-status issues.

Following the Intifadah, though, Jordan along with Egypt withdrew its ambassadors from Israel. After the Sharm-al-Sheik Summit in Egypt in 2005, both countries announced plans to return ambassadors to the country.

Demographics

Jordanians are Arab Semitic Levantines, except for a few small communities of Chechens, Circassians, Armenians, and Kurds who have adapted to Arab culture. The official language is [Arabic, but English is used widely in commerce and government. About 70% of Jordan's population is urban; less than 6% of the rural population is nomadic or semi-nomadic. Most people live where the rainfall supports agriculture. About 2.6 million persons registered as Palestinian refugees and displaced persons reside in Jordan, most as citizens.

External links

Government

• National Information System (NIS) Official Government Site

General information

• Arab Gateway - Jordan
• CIA World Factbook - Jordan
• Open Directory Project - Jordan directory category
• US State Department - Jordan includes Background Notes, Country Study and major reports

News

• Jordan News Agency (Petra)
• Jordan Planet
• Jordan First
• Jordan Times News
• Yahoo! Full Coverage - Jordan headline links

Other

• Jordan - The Ancient, Holy Land...
• Coins and Currency of the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan
• Asinah - Jordan guide
• Go2Petra guide to Petra and other places in Jordan
• Jordanlinks Portal
• Jordan Linux Users Group
• Photos of Jordan (Petra, Jerash, Dead Sea, Wadi Rum, Amman, etc.)

Credits

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