US embassy cable - 04AMMAN381

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 AMMAN 000381 
 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O. 12958: DECL: 01/15/2014 
TAGS: PHUM, PGOV, PREL, KISL, IS, JO 
SUBJECT: ISLAMISTS WEIGH IN AGAINST THE U.S., ISRAEL AND 
FRANCE 
 
REF: A. AMMAN 00304 
     B. 03 AMMAN 08225 
 
Classified By: Ambassador Edward W. Gnehm for Reasons 1.5 (b), (d) 
 
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SUMMARY 
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1.  (C) The Jordanian Muslim Brotherhood and its political 
wing, the Islamic Action Front (IAF), have recently joined a 
charge against reform of the state educational curriculum and 
spearheaded a new drive in Parliament to sever relations with 
Israel.  The Islamists also denounced the French government 
for its decision to ban headscarves in state schools. 
Israeli politicians' rhetoric about the displacement of 
Palestinians from the West Bank, which raises the specter of 
another wave of refugees coming to Jordan, has contributed to 
a public mood of paranoia about Israeli motives and 
receptivity to Islamist tub-thumping.  End Summary. 
 
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"EXTREMIST" AMERICA 
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2.  (U) On January 7, secretary general of the IAF Hamzah 
Mansour gave an interview on Al-Arabiyah television via 
satellite from Amman.  When asked about the IAF's opposition 
to the inclusion of new human rights materials in Jordan's 
educational curriculum (see ref a), Mansour stated that the 
proposed changes were intended "to present our pupils with an 
Islam that is tailored to suit the specifications of Sharon 
and Bush, and not Almighty God."  Mansour rejected the idea 
that the current curriculum supported extremism and instead 
claimed "it is the U.S. administration and its lackey Blair 
who is the inventor, leader and sponsor of extremism." 
 
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NO PEACE IN OUR TIME 
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3.  (U) During his interview, Mansour also condemned the 
Jordan-Israel peace agreement, claiming that it was a "treaty 
of subjugation" that was "imposed on our people."  He asked 
rhetorically, "What kind of peace can be made with those who 
expelled five million Palestinians from their land and 
replaced them with five million bastards brought in from all 
corners of the world?" 
 
4.  (U) In addition to such statements of condemnation of 
Jordan-Israel relations, the IAF rounded up 41 MPs (roughly 
37% of the 110-seat Chamber of Deputies) to endorse a 
memorandum demanding that the GOJ sever ties with Israel and 
expel the Israeli ambassador.  It also requested that an 
expected visit to Jordan by Israeli FM Silvan Shalom later 
this month be canceled.  "The government should consider the 
Israeli ambassador persona non grata and halt all dealings 
with the Jewish entity," read the memo. 
 
5.  (C) While the IAF-generated memo reflects long-standing 
anger at Israel for its treatment of Palestinians, its 
endorsement by mainstream MPs was in direct reaction to a 
recent proposal by hard-liners in the Israeli Likud party 
central committee that recommended the transfer of 
Palestinians to a third country in the region.  The GOJ was 
quick to rebuff the proposal, with Prime Minister Faisal 
al-Fayez stating on January 11 that Jordan "rejects any 
Israeli schemes which seek to expel Palestinians or to return 
to statements that Jordan is a substitute homeland (for 
Palestinians)."  King Abdullah also publicly rejected the 
proposal, highlighting the issue's importance to Jordanians. 
 
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HEADSCARF MANIA 
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6.  (U) Mansour also directed his ire at the French decision 
to prohibit women from wearing Islamic headscarves in state 
schools.  He claimed that the French President "wants to take 
away the robe of chastity from the Muslim woman and he wants 
to defame her image."  Mansour also warned that the ban 
marked "the beginning of a new era of more restrictions on 
Muslims in France and afterward throughout Europe and 
elsewhere in countries around the world." 
 
7.  (U) To further express condemnation of the French 
decision, female members of the IAF launched a petition 
campaign in Jordan calling on France to rescind its headscarf 
ban.  As of January 12, 30,000 signatures had been collected. 
 IAF MP Hayat Al-Maseemi (West Banker, Zarqa - 1st District) 
said the campaign was "a show of solidarity with Muslim women 
in France and the world," and she questioned why France 
considered headscarves "a threat to secularism, while 
regarding revealing attire as part of public freedoms." 
 
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COMMENT 
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8.  (C) What is noteworthy here is that IAF calls to sever 
relations with Israel may be finding increased resonance 
among Jordanians as the Palestinian-Israeli stalemate drags 
on and as some in the Israeli right-wing look to Jordan as a 
solution.  The fact that 24 mainstream MPs joined the 17 IAF 
MPs shows popular frustration with Israeli policies.  It also 
highlights the extreme sensitivity, bordering on paranoia, 
that Jordanians and the GOJ feel at even the hint of an 
Israeli transfer of Palestinians to Jordan. 
 
Visit Embassy Amman's classified web site at 
http://www.state.sgov.gov/p/nea/amman or access the site 
through the State Department's SIPRNET home page. 
GNEHM