Jordan marches call to topple government

Jordan’s Islamic movement frustrated expectations of the local and international media who gathered near a mosque in central Amman to hear what they had been promised, as a tough stance against the Jordanian regime. The attendance at the gathering  following Friday  prayers was unexpectedly weak.  Speeches were voluble,  but they were nothing out of the ordinary,  calling for reform and the fight against corruption. The movement waged a double attack on the government of Awn al-Khasawneh and the House of Representatives. The criticism took place in the wake of leaks via the media on the subject of election law. The House of Representatives was exposed to harsh criticism after a fiery statement issued yesterday. The surprise they said they would deliver was absent, and so was the expected 12,000 followers. The Islamic and popular movements had announced that they were organising 11 activities on Friday in several areas  of the country to call for reform and protest against the arrest of activists. A rally launched after Friday prayers from the downtown area in front of Al Husseini mosque with the participation of three movements, called for the release  of detainees and re-opening the so-called phosphate file. They also expressed their rejection of civilians being tried  before military courts. In Nozha area in central Amman, the controversial Islamic leader Zaki Bani Irsheid participated in a march in support of  the Islamic movement saying that anyone who does not seek reform, should step down from the stage. He considered that the elections law prepared by the government will deliver a House of Representatives, worse than the present one. Following Friday prayers, a march of hundreds started  in front of Said Ibn Al-Musayyib mosque. This march was called for by the Muslim Brotherhood and the Islamic Action Front. They rejected the security campaign of arrests against those calling  for reform and demanded the immediate release of Tafila and al-Dawar al-Rabea detainees. Participants raised unprecedented slogans against the Jordanian regime. A further march was organised in Abdali area which they dubbed "Friday of  recovery of public money and support of the judiciary." This rally moved  on to the House of Representatives. In addition to their demands to release Tafila’s detainees, hundreds in Tafla province joined a march which began in front of Tafila mosque. Detention of protesters did not prevent activists from raising slogans or crossing the security barriers. In the province of Ma’an, a protest took place in front of the Great Mosque in the centre of the city where demonstrators  called for the dissolution of the House of Representative. Protesters also called for the release of  the detainees of Tafila and to lift the security grip on civilian life. They also demanded the recovery of the looted wealth from the country. Moreover, another demonstration organised by dozens of  youth activists took place in the city of Salt whose rallying cry was that  they would cleanse the country of corruption which has  wreaked havoc in Jordan.