Jordanian Political, Military Figures Protest against US Army Presence
A large number of Jordanian political and military figures in a statement underlined their opposition to the presence of the US forces in their country, and said Jordan will not be turned into a base for aggression against Syria.
“Attempts to involve Jordan in a military attack against Syria are a plot to destroy the country and push the Syrian and Jordanian armies into direct confrontation,” a statement by the Jordanian figures said on Wednesday.
“The US and Israel accompanied by the oppressor powers of certain Persian Gulf littoral states are striving to engage Jordan in certain plans which run counter to our nation’s will,” it added.
The Jordanian figures called on the government to provide the ground for the withdrawal of the US forces from their country.
Iran has also warned the US against its decision to deploy hundreds of military forces in Jordan to support the opposition groups in Syria, and said any foreign intervention in the Muslim country will harm the Syrian people.
“Any measure in line with military activities and military intervention in Syria will be against the Syrian people’s interests,” Iranian Foreign Ministry Spokesman Ramin Mehman-Parast said in a weekly press conference in Tehran last month.
He reiterated that the only solution to the Syrian crisis is non-interference of the foreign states in the country.
US Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel said on April 17 that Washington is sending 200 troops to Jordan to help contain the violence in Syria, fueling speculations that the US is setting the stage for an intervention in the Arab country.
Syria has been experiencing unrest since March 2011 with organized attacks by well-armed gangs against Syrian police forces and border guards being reported across the country.
The US and its western and regional allies have long sought to topple Assad and his ruling system. Media reports said that the Syrian rebels and terrorist groups have received significantly more and better weapons in recent weeks, a crime paid for by the Persian Gulf Arab states and coordinated by the United States.
The US daily, Washington Post, reported in May that the Syrian rebels and terrorist groups battling the President Bashar al-Assad’s government have received significantly more and better weapons in recent weeks, a crime paid for by the Persian Gulf Arab states and coordinated by the United States.
The newspaper, quoting opposition activists and US and foreign officials, reported that Obama administration officials emphasized the administration has expanded contacts with opposition military forces to provide the Persian Gulf nations with assessments of rebel credibility and command-and-control infrastructure.
Opposition activists who several months ago said the rebels were running out of ammunition said in May that the flow of weapons – most bought on the black market in neighboring countries or from elements of the Syrian military in the past – has significantly increased after a decision by Saudi Arabia, Qatar and other Persian Gulf states to provide millions of dollars in funding each month.
