Jordanian authorities have foiled what they believed was an alleged coup against the King of Jordan, King Abdullah II.
So far, at least 20 people have been arrested, including royals and security officials. Among them, Jordan’s former crown prince, Prince Hamzah bin Hussein, says he was placed under house arrest.
Prince Hamzah has since released a video saying that he was given orders by the chief of general staff of the Jordanian armed forces to stay at home and cut communication with the outside world.
“..He informed me that I was not allowed to go out, to communicate with people or to meet with them because in the meetings that I had been present in – or on social media relating to visits that I had made – there had been criticism of the government or the king,” Prince Hamzah said.
He added that he will be cut from the internet and telephone privileges, despite that he was not accused of making criticism himself.
However, in this video, he expressed concern over flaws in Jordan’s governance, saying that it “has reached a point where no one is able to speak or express [an] opinion on anything without being bullied, arrested, harassed, and threatened.”
“This country has been stymied in corruption, nepotism, and in misrule. And the result has been the loss of hope that is apparent in pretty much every Jordanian.”
According to BBC, Prince Hamzah, the half-brother of King Abdullah, was the late King Hussein’s favorite son from his favorite wife, American-born Queen Noor.
King Hussein used to refer to Prince Hamzah as “the delight of my eye” and named him crown prince in 1999.
When King Hussein passed away, Prince Hamzah, who was 24 at the time, was seen as too young and inexperienced to succeed as king, hence his half-brother Abdullah took the throne instead and became king.
Now Prince Hamzah is seemingly being accused of being connected to a suspected plot against his brother.
