In an interview published here this week, Jordanian King Hussein promised Israel “a very warm peace” and a major effort to curb Islamic militants operating against Israel from his kingdom.
The pledges appeared in an interview published Tuesday by the Israeli daily Yediot Achronot.
In the interview, which was conducted in his palace in Amman, King Hussein rejected criticism from Syrian President Hafez Assad that the treaty was “blasphemous.”
“Nobody in the world will teach me what Islam is and what my belief is.
“Let them show me where it is written that Islam is against peace and coexistence between nations,” Hussein said.
Assad has been openly critical of the Israeli-Jordanian peace treaty, particularly of clauses allowing Israel to lease indefinitely two parcels of Jordanian land.
“I would expect (Assad) first of all to read the agreement and afterward to criticize it,” said Hussein. “The agreement is our business,” he added pointedly.
Hussein described his expectations for the new relations with Israel as “a very special peace.
“There will be no international police or American units on our border,” Hussein said.
“I think it will be a very warm peace,” he said, using wording that touches a chord with Israelis, who complain that the peace with Egypt has been “cold.”
Asked how he would deal with the Islamic fundamentalist Hamas movement, which maintains a base in Amman, Hussein said he would “do everything in our power that there will be no activities from Jordanian territory.”
Meanwhile, Syria has for the second time this year said it will allow Israeli journalists into the country, diplomatic sources said.
The government gave permission for two Israeli reporters to enter the country on American passports with the White House press corps for President Clinton’s visit Thursday, the sources said.
Syrian officials initially refused to give entry permission to Avinoam Bar-Yosef, of the Ma’ariv daily newspaper, and Haim Shibi, of Yediot Achronot, but they relented after U.S. officials insisted.
The Archive of the Jewish Telegraphic Agency includes articles published from 1923 to 2008. Archive stories reflect the journalistic standards and practices of the time they were published.
