Report: Tensions with Jordan still sky-high, Israel likens Amman’s FM to Ben Gvir

Jordanian Foreign Minister Ayman Safadi gives a joint press conference with his German counterpart on April 3, 2023 at the Foreign Office in Berlin. (John Macdougall/AFP)
Jordanian Foreign Minister Ayman Safadi gives a joint press conference with his German counterpart on April 3, 2023 at the Foreign Office in Berlin. (John Macdougall/AFP)

Tensions are still high in Israel’s ties with Jordan, and an Israeli official has accused Amman’s foreign minister of fanning the flames over the past week’s events in Jerusalem’s flashpoint Temple Mount, according to the Walla news site.

The outlet quotes an unnamed senior Israeli official saying Foreign Minister Ayman Safadi’s conduct and statements exacerbated the crisis, adding that he had “acted like Jordan’s [Itamar] Ben Gvir” — a reference to the extremist Israeli national security minister, whose conduct and policies have been widely viewed as contributing to growing tensions with the US and other countries.

Jordan has repeatedly lambasted Jerusalem in more than 10 statements over an incident last week in which cops entered the Al-Aqsa Mosque to confront armed Palestinian rioters and were filmed beating some of them. At one point, Jordan refused to receive messages through the US or the UAE, saying it would only accept direct messages and only if Israel commits to not entering the mosque again.

Safadi held a series of interviews with international media in which he voiced scathing criticism of Israel. According to Walla, he is now still refusing to speak with Israeli government representatives and tensions are still very high.

“The Israelis told the US in the last few days that the fact that no ‘explosion’ happened [in relations] is the result of the Biden administration’s pressure on Jordan and the Waqf,” which administers the Temple Mount, an unnamed source is quoted as saying. “On the other hand, the Jordanians told the US that this was the result of the Biden administration’s pressure on Israel.”

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