Jordan - AL-MONITOR: The Middle Eastʼs leading independent news source since 2012

Jordan cover image

Jordan

August 13, 2026

Amman 7:22 pm

30°C

US President Donald Trump (R) meets with Jordanian King Abdullah II in the Oval Office of the White House, Washington, DC, Feb. 11, 2025.

Analysis

Jordan shores up US lifelines as Iran targets Amman’s reliance on Washington

Already a leading recipient of US aid, Jordan has secured fresh funds from the United States as the Iran war tests Amman and Washington's partnerships.

Samuel Wendel

By Samuel Wendel

In Washington, DC, reporting on regional business and tech

Iranians ride their motorcycles past a deactivated Kheibar Shekan ballistic missile in front of a picture of Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei in Tehran's Bahrestan Square on September 27, 2025, as part of an exhibit to mark the "Sacred Defense Week" commemorating the 1980-88 Iran-Iraq war. (Photo by ATTA KENARE / AFP) (Photo by ATTA KENARE/AFP via Getty Images)

Jordan intercepts 7 missiles, 6 drones as Iran warns civilians near US bases

The attacks on Jordan, Bahrain and Kuwait come after 13 consecutive nights of US strikes against Iran.

An old locomotive sits outside the Hejaz rail station in old Damascus on February 23, 2010. The Hejaz railway ran from Damascucs to Medina in Saudi Arabia and was part of the Ottoman railway network. AFP PHOTO/LOUAI BESHARA (Photo credit should read LOUAI BESHARA/AFP via Getty Images)

Explainer

Saudi Arabia, Turkey advance plans to revive historic Hejaz Railway

Turkish and Saudi officials signed agreements as part of a Turkish push to revive the Hejaz Railway linking Turkey to the Gulf through Syria, Jordan and Saudi Arabia.

Latest News

Culture

10 MENA teams at 2026 World Cup: Morocco eyes title, Iran faces visa hurdles

Morocco's midfielder Azzedine Ounahi celebrates scoring with teammates during the FIFA World Cup 2026 Group E African qualification football match between Morocco and Niger at the Prince Moulay Abdellah Sports Complex in Rabat on September 5, 2025. (Photo by Abdel Majid BZIOUAT / AFP)

Israel energy minister says gas flowing to Egypt, Jordan despite shutdown reports

A view of the platform of the Leviathan natural gas field in the Mediterranean Sea is pictured from the Israeli northern coastal beach of Nasholim, on Aug. 29, 2022.

Saudi Arabia, Jordan, Qatar to deepen security ties amid Iran war: What to know

A trilateral meeting was held today in Jeddah, bringing together His Royal Highness Prince Mohammed bin Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud, Crown Prince and Prime Minister King Abdullah II ibn Al Hussein of the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan, and Amir of the State of Qatar Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, on March 20, 2026.

Egypt closes stores early, Jordan bans AC as Iran war takes toll

Shops close early, on March 28, 2026, in Cairo, Egypt.

Abeer Ayyoub

In Istanbul, reporting on Palestine

Hanna Davis

In Beirut, reporting on politics, migration, human rights

Lyse Mauvais

In Amman, reporting on humanitarian crises

TO GO WITH AFP STORY BY KAMAL TAHA
Men smoke water pipes at a cafe in the Jordanian capital Amman on February 3, 2014. A ban on water pipes in restaurants and cafes has caused uproar in Jordan where $1 billion worth of tobacco goes up in smoke every year. Under a decision based on a 2008 law that was not previously enforced, the government has announced that by the end of 2014 the licences of more than 5,000 establishments that serve hookahs will be revoked. AFP PHOTO/KHALIL MAZRAAWI (Photo credit s

Foreign, local workers at odds in Jordan's labor market

The unemployment rate among Jordanians is increasing, as Syrian refugees in Jordan are willing to work for longer hours and lower wages.

Jordanian protesters take part in a march against a government agreement to import natural gas from Israel, in Amman March 6, 2015. The red placards read "The enemy's gas is occupation". REUTERS/Majd Jaber (JORDAN - Tags: POLITICS ENERGY CIVIL UNREST BUSINESS) - RTR4SBDC

Jordanians protest Israeli gas deal

Jordanians continue to oppose the natural gas deal struck with Israel, arguing that it threatens the country’s economic and political independence.

U.S. and Jordanian soldiers participate in Exercise Eager Lion at the Jordan-Saudi Arabia border, south of Amman May 18, 2015. Around 10,000 participants from 18 countries will take part in Eager Lion. REUTERS/Muhammad Hamed - RTX1DI9O

Defense spending bill provides boost to Jordan

House Defense appropriators released a FY 2016 bill that seeks to help Jordan fight the Islamic State.

Supporters of the Jordanian Muslim Brotherhood take part in a rally in Amman, celebrating what Hamas say is its victory in Gaza, August 29, 2014. Tens of thousands of the Brotherhood's supporters took part in the celebrations after an open-ended ceasefire, mediated by Egypt, took effect on Tuesday evening between Israel and Palestinian militant groups in the Gaza Strip. Hamas presented the truce as a victory for the Palestinian people. REUTERS/Muhammad Hamed (JORDAN - Tags: POLITICS CIVIL UNREST CONFLICT)

Jordan takes sides in Islamist rift

The Jordanian government is supporting a Muslim Brotherhood breakaway society, thus deepening the divide within the group in Jordan.

Jordan's King Abdullah (R) meets with Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas at the Royal Palace in Amman November 12, 2014. REUTERS/Majed Jaber (JORDAN - Tags: POLITICS ROYALS) - RTR4DV07

Could Jordan-Palestine confederation be in the cards?

Palestinian and Jordanian officials are contemplating the idea of a Jordan-Palestine confederation, to be created after the establishment of a Palestinian state and with Israeli involvement.

Jordan's King Abdullah addresses the European Parliament during a debate in Strasbourg, March 10, 2015. REUTERS/Vincent Kessler (FRANCE - Tags: POLITICS ROYALS) - RTR4SQZH

Jordan focuses on IS fight while Gulf allies pull back

Jordan's King Abdullah expresses strong differences from many of his allies on how best to deal with the Islamic State, fighting regional terrorism, developments in Syria and US Middle East policy.

Radical Muslim cleric Abu Qatada (R) listens to Islamist scholar Sheik Abu Mohammad al Maqdisi during a celebration after his release from a prison near Amman September 24, 2014. Abu Qatada walked free from a Jordanian jail on Wednesday after being cleared of charges of conspiring in a plot to attack tourists - his second acquittal this year following a long extradition process from Britain. The state security court in the capital Amman ruled that the charges against the radical preacher - providing spiritu

Jordan's Salafists switch allegiance to IS

As militant alliances continue to shift, Jordan's strategic stance on Salafist groups has become ever more complex.

A member of Jordanian security walks near the main Jaber border crossing in the Jordanian city of Mafraq, April 2, 2015, as smoke rises on the Syrian side after violence broke out near the border. Jordan said it had temporarily closed its border crossing with Syria on Wednesday because of violence on the other side of the frontier, a move it described as a precautionary measure. Mainstream Syrian rebels seized the Nasib border crossing with Jordan from the Syrian government on Wednesday, the leader of one o

Syrian border closure deals blow to Jordan economy

The Free Syrian Army has taken over the strategic border crossing of Nasib, a main trade route between Jordan and Syria, pushing the Jordanian government to seek alternative transport options and export markets.

Fighters loyal to Syria's President Bashar Al-Assad rest on a hill after regaining control of Tal Fatima, a town south of Damascus, in the Daraa countryside March 1, 2015. Government forces say they've regained control of this and many other villages in the south - wresting them back from rebel hands.A general made the announcement on state television, saying a large number of Nusra Front fighters were killed and their weapons destroyed. The gains were said to happen on Friday and Saturday in a large offens

Jordan sharpens focus on IS as Gulf confronts Iran

Jordan may have Iranian fighters on its border but its No. 1 priority is still combating the Islamic State.

Syrian women walk along an agriculture field after finishing their work in the Lebanese village of Ammiq in west Bekaa March 2, 2015. REUTERS/Jamal Saidi (LEBANON - Tags: SOCIETY IMMIGRATION BUSINESS EMPLOYMENT AGRICULTURE) - RTR4RSZD

Al-Monitor highlights diversity of Islamic feminism

Al-Monitor’s monthlong series on women concludes; Lebanese foreign minister appeals to UN Security Council for protection of Christians; members of Congress seek "formal dialogue" on future of Turkish democracy; the fault lines in Aleppo; have Israeli elections sparked long-stalled Palestinian reconciliation?; Ali Hashem profiles self-proclaimed Islamic State Caliph Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi.

Fighters from the Shi'ite Badr Brigade militia stand near their flag as they guard at a checkpoint along a highway recently taken from militants of the Islamic State, outside the town of Sulaiman Pek September 5, 2014. The highway, which continues south to Baghdad, is now controlled by Shi'ite militia fighters and the Kurdish Peshmerga. REUTERS/Ahmed Jadallah (IRAQ - Tags: CIVIL UNREST POLITICS CONFLICT) - RTR454AO

Is the Shiite revival here?

Iran's support of religiously motivated forces in the Middle East has been viewed by many as a success while Saudi Arabia has struggled to find find reliable proxies.

Iraqi Christians find safe haven in Jordan’s churches

Many Iraqi Christian refugees have given up on the Middle East and refuse to ever go back to Iraq, even if the Islamic State is completely annihilated.