BFF
“A protester died after security forces broke up clashes on Friday between supporters of King Abdullah and protesters calling for reform, and the government warned it would not tolerate “chaos.” Prime Minister Marouf al-Bakhit blamed opposition Islamists for the clash in the pro-Western monarchy, which has seen weeks of protests calling for curbs on the king’s powers……..”

Arab leaders are not very creative. From Libya to Bahrain they have all tended to blame the uprisings on the same unlikely factors. The culprits are always a combination of: Islamists, Iranians, and drugs (one or two also added those old Arab stand-bys; Zionism and Masonism and Feminism and Trotskyism). This is not to deny that the Islamists, or Iranians, or drugs have some role in these troubles. But they are tiny influences if at all. The main influence is the regimes and their corruption and oppression.
Jordan and Syria. Both countries are police states with an important difference: in Syria you can tell you are in a police state (at least I did some years ago). In Jordan you can’t tell right away that you are in a police state, but you will when necessary. Jordan exports more security agents and interrogators than Syria, mostly to the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain. Both regimes have blamed Islamists for their troubles. King Abdul’s thugs are as efficient as al-Assad’s (or the other Arab despots).
Cheers
mhg



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