Excerpts: Projected gas deal with Israel. ISIS re Jordan December 17, 2014

+++SOURCE: Jordan Times 17 Dec.’14:”House speaker urges restraint as MPs
reject projected gas deal with Israel, by Raed Omari

SUBJECT :Projected gas deal with Israel

FULL TEXT:AMMAN — A planned gas deal with Israel is causing considerable
damage to relations between the executive and legislative authorities, as
several deputies stand firm against any such cooperation and express
readiness to fight it through various means.

Meanwhile, in the opposite camp in the Lower House of Parliament, there are
MPs who call for reason and restraint in dealing with such a controversial
issue, particularly as imported energy costs Jordan a quarter of its gross
domestic product.

The anti-deal camp in the Lower House is threatening to initiate a motion of
no confidence in the government of Prime Minister Abdullah Ensour if it
imports natural gas from Israel. A 15-member group in this camp has
threatened to resign en masse if any such deal is signed and almost 20 MPs
have expressed their intention to start the motion of no confidence in the
150-strong House.

In a bid to balance this and correct what he described as "misconceptions",
Lower House Speaker Atef Tarawneh noted that "it is illogical and unfair to
press the government over a matter it has not yet decided on".

“The pledged no-confidence vote in the government should not be based on a
planned deal that has not been signed yet,” Tarawneh told The Jordan Times
on Tuesday[16 Dec.].

“Once such a deal is officially signed, then deputies can see to the
necessary reaction.”

Tarawneh also called on MPs to replace their current “roaring”
anti-government sentiments with reason, arguing that “the government should
not be cornered on the basis of intentions”.

As a unified body, the House has addressed the projected gas deal with logic
and according to constitutional doctrines, the speaker explained, referring
to last week’s sessions.

“We dedicated two sessions to discuss issue during which 107 MPs presented
their remarks. The House then collectively recommended that the government
shelve the planned natural gas deal.”

Tarawneh said the House proposed that the government look into alternative
gas sources, including Palestine and Cyprus.

“All in all, once such a deal is signed, no one can prevent deputies from
reacting the way they deem necessary. It is their constitutional right. But
let’s wait and see.”

In a related development, a group of MPs announced Tuesda[16 Dec,]y that
they will resign en masse if the government insists on importing natural gas
from Israel under a 15-year deal they described as “shameful and
humiliating”.

In September, the government said the state-owned National Electric Power
Company (NEPCO) and the US-based Noble Energy signed a deal under which
NEPCO would buy 250-300 million cubic feet of natural gas per day from Noble
Energy.

Last month, the government said that NEPCO’s losses have so far exceeded JD5
billion, and have been exacerbated by the disruption in natural gas supplies
from Egypt.

The last time Jordan received gas from Egypt was in January when it stood at
around 35 million cubic feet per day, a quantity which falls short of the
220 million cubic feet per day stipulated under a gas agreement signed
between the two countries.

The decision to resign by a group of MPs belonging to various parliamentary
blocs was taken following a meeting to discuss how to react once the deal is
signed, according to Deputy Ali Sneid (Madaba, 2nd District).

“Prime Minister Abdullah Ensour’s government is challenging and neglecting
the Lower House’s stand in its arbitrary insistence on the biggest shameful
act in the Kingdom’s history,” Sneid told The Jordan Times.

“If the government goes ahead with the deal, we will resign. This is the
least we can do in response to such a shameful action.”

The lawmaker said 15 MPs have signed the memorandum stating their intent to
resign and other colleagues from various blocs will join in.

“We will hold a press conference at the House, where we will issue a
collective statement carrying our irreversible and absolute resignation,”
Sneid added.

In previous remarks to The Jordan Times, MP Mahmoud Kharabsheh (Balqa, 1st
District) said there are “numerous” alternative gas sources the government
can resort to other than Israel, accusing the government of “attempting to
close all doors intentionally to pass the deal with Israel”.

“This is not sentiment, not accusation or indulgence in conspiracy theory.
Jordan has natural gas reserves. I have documents proving that. Plus, the
Algerians offered to provide us with natural gas at preferential prices. But
no one is listening,” Kharabsheh claimed.

As president of the Jordanian-Algerian Parliamentary Friendship Committee,
Kharabsheh said he received promises from the Algerians about their
readiness to provide Jordan with natural gas either through the Egyptian
pipeline or a floating gas terminal in Aqaba.

Responding to deputies’ criticism during last week’s session to discuss the
deal, the premier said the government had requested the Algerians to provide
Jordan with gas but they said: “We have no gas for sale.”

Ensour also said that MPs have the right to express their opinions regarding
the intended deal, stressing at the same time that his government is “no
less patriotic” than the Chamber and the wider public.

“I cannot accept having my history stigmatised with approving a deal that
might harm Jordan and Jordanians. The government is here to serve the
country and its interests,” he said.

Earlier this week, more than 20 MPs signed a memorandum requesting a motion
of no confidence in Ensour’s government, primarily citing its incapability
to run the state’s affairs.

Kharabsheh, who authored the memorandum, said the government’s insistence on
resorting to price hikes as the only remedy for financial problems was
another major reason behind the call for a no-confidence vote.



+++SOURCE: International Business Times via Jordan Times 17 Dec.’14:”ISIS
Destroys At Least Six Border Control Stations on Jordan-Iraq Border”, by
Erin Banco

SUBJECT: ISIS re Jordan

QUOTE:”So far (Jordan) measures have not stopped the Sunni militants from
trying to enter the country”

FULL TEXT:Islamic State group militants gained a foothold on the Jordan-Iraq
border Tuesday[16 Dec. when they destroyed at least six Jordanian border
control posts, according to reports from Jordanian activists and Islamic
fighters associated with the Islamic State, also known as ISIS. The attacks,
which Jordan's army has yet to confirm, marked the first time since June the
Sunni militant group tried to enter Jordan from Iraq.

ISIS fighters originally took control of a border post on the Iraqi side of
the Jordanian border in June, just a few weeks after the Islamic State group
seized Mosul, Iraq's second-largest city. ISIS then advanced on the border
post within Jordan, called Trebil, the New York Times reported. Also in
June, Jordan passed a controversial counterterrorism law giving authorities
new powers to imprison "citizens who lend ideological and recruitment
support to terrorist organizations."

The Jordanian army has yet to confirm Tuesday's[16 Dec.] attacks by
Iraqi-based ISIS militants.

According to a report published by the Carnegie Endowment For International
Peace last week, Jordan has taken several measures to stave off ISIS,
including beefing up border security, arresting potential supporters of
terrorism and tightening control over mosques. So far, though, those
measures have not stopped the Sunni militants from trying to enter the
country.

Those attempts come from both Iraq and Syria. On Monday[15 Dec.] the Jordan
Times reported a Jordanian border patrol experienced difficulty when it
tried to stop an "infiltration attempt by three Arab nationals from Syria."
A Jordan Armed Forces spokesperson, Col. Mamdoh al-Ameri, said three people
were injured during the infiltration attempt and border guards arrested two
of them. The report from the Jordan Times said the border crossings have
experienced several "infiltration attempts." Earlier this month, the border
guards stopped five people from entering Jordan from Syria. The news report
did not indicate if those people attempting to cross from Syria were
affiliated with ISIS.



After the takeover of al-Rutba, ISIS has its eyes on Jordan and Saudi

The International Business Times reported in September that the Sunni
militant group may have infiltrated Jordan through its eastern border. David
Schenker of the Washington Institute on Near East Policy published a report
late Wednesday[17 Dec.] that said militant Islamists continue to "challenge
the kingdom's stability."

According to the report, over the past several months, the Jordan Armed
Forces have prevented "several" cross-border infiltration attempts by armed
groups from Syria.

"The popularity of ISIS appears to have grown as well in light of the
group's gains in Syria and Iraq," the report said.

It is unclear if supporters of ISIS in Jordan have formed legitimate
battalions with leaders, though some have speculated that the ISIS movement
in Jordan was motivated by Salafists Abu Muhammad al-Maqdisi and Abu Qatada.

According to Saudi media, Jordan has given some NATO members intelligence
that describes a growing ISIS threat in the country.

Jordan is not a member of NATO but is considered a major NATO ally. For
months, the U.S. has been using Jordan as a base for training vetted
moderate opposition troops. The U.S. also relies on Jordan for intelligence
and for its participation in coalition airstrikes against ISIS in Iraq and
Syria

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Sue Lerner - Associate, IMRA