Introduction to Jordan

Jordan (Arabic: الأردنّ, transliterated Al-ʼUrdunn), officially the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan (Arabic: المملكة الأردنية الهاشمية), is an Arab country in the Middle East. It is bordered by Syria to the north, Iraq to the north-east, Saudi Arabia to the east and south, and Israel and the Palestinian Territories to the west. It shares with Israel and the Palestinian Territories the coastlines of the Dead Sea, and the Gulf of Aqaba with Israel, Saudi Arabia, and Egypt.

The land that became Jordan forms part of the history-rich Fertile Crescent region. Its known history began around 2000 B.C., when Semitic Amorites settled around the Jordan River in the area called Canaan. Subsequent invaders and settlers included Hittites, Egyptians, Israelites, Assyrians, Babylonians, Persians, Greeks, Romans, Byzantines, Arab Muslims, Christian Crusaders, Mameluks, Ottoman Turks, and, finally, the British. At the end of World War I, the territory now comprising Israel, Jordan, the West Bank, the Gaza Strip, and Jerusalem was awarded to the United Kingdom by the League of Nations as the mandate for Palestine.

In 1922, in an attempt to assuage Arab anger resulting from the Balfour Declaration, which "view[ed] with favour the establishment in Palestine [region included Jordan] of a national home for the Jewish people", with the approval of the League of Nations, the British created the semi-autonomous Arab Emirate of Transjordan in all Palestinian territory east of the Jordan river. The British installed the Hashemite Prince Abdullah I of Jordan, while continuing the administration of Palestine and Transjordan under a single British High Commissioner. The mandate over Transjordan ended on 22 May 1946; on 25 May, the country became the independent Hashemite Kingdom of Transjordan. It ended its special defense treaty relationship with the United Kingdom in 1957.

Transjordan opposed the creation of the State of Israel in May 1948, and took part in the attack by the Arab states on the newly founded nation, and the subsequent warfare. The armistice agreements of 3 April 1949 left Jordan in control of the West Bank and provided that the armistice demarcation lines were without prejudice to future territorial settlements or boundary lines.

In 1950, Transjordan annexed the West Bank, and the country was renamed "the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan" to reflect this. The annexation was recognised only by the United Kingdom.

Following the formation of the United Arab Republic by Egypt and Syria, and the Iraqi Revolution in 1958, the Hashemite kingdom was threatened, its trade routes and Iraqi oil supply cut. In consequence, Jordan had to request aid from the USA and United Kingdom, which prevented escalations between Jordan and the UAR. (See the Conflict between the United Arab Republic and Jordan.)

In the year 1965 there was an exchange of territories between Saudi Arabia and Jordan. Jordan gave up a relatively large area of inland desert in return for a small piece of sea-shore near Aqaba.

Jordan signed a mutual defense pact in May 1967 with Egypt, and it participated in the June 1967 war against Israel along with Syria, Egypt, and Iraq. During the war, Jordan lost its control of the West Bank and all of Jerusalem. In 1988, Jordan renounced all claims to the West Bank but retained an administrative role pending a final settlement, and its 1994 treaty with Israel allowed for a continuing Jordanian role in Muslim and Christian holy places in Jerusalem. The international community as represented in the United Nations considers the West Bank to be territory occupied by Israel and believes that its final status should be determined through direct negotiations among the parties concerned on the basis of UN Security Council Resolution 242 and UN Security Council Resolution 338.

The 1967 war led to a dramatic increase in the number of Palestinians, especially from the West Bank, living in Jordan. Its Palestinian refugee population – 700,000 in 1966 – grew by another 300,000 from the West Bank. The period following the 1967 war saw an upsurge in the power and importance of Palestinian resistance elements (fedayeen) in Jordan. The heavily armed fedayeen constituted a growing threat to the sovereignty and security of the Hashemite state, and open fighting erupted in June 1970. The battle in which Palestinian fighters from various Palestinian Liberation Organization (PLO) groups were expelled from Jordan is commonly known as Black September.

Other Arab governments attempted to work out a peaceful solution, but by September, continuing fedayeen actions in Jordan – including the destruction of three international airliners hijacked by the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine and held in the desert east of Amman – prompted the government to take action to regain control over its territory and population. In the ensuing heavy fighting, a Syrian tank force took up positions in northern Jordan to support the fedayeen but subsequently retreated. By 22 September, Arab foreign ministers meeting at Cairo had arranged a cease-fire beginning the following day. Sporadic violence continued, however, until Jordanian forces led by Habis Al-Majali won a decisive victory over the fedayeen in July 1971, expelling them from the country.

At the Rabat summit conference in 1974, Jordan agreed, along with the rest of the Arab League, that the PLO was the "sole legitimate representative of the Palestinian people", thereby relinquishing to that organization its role as representative of the West Bank Palestinians.

No fighting occurred along the 1967 Jordan River cease-fire line during the October 1973 Arab-Israeli war, but Jordan sent a brigade to Syria to fight Israeli units on Syrian territory. Jordan did not participate in the Gulf War of 1990-91. In 1991, Jordan agreed, along with Syria, Lebanon, and Palestinian representatives, to participate in direct peace negotiations with Israel at the Madrid Conference, sponsored by the U.S. and Russia. It negotiated an end to hostilities with Israel and signed a declaration to that effect on July 25, 1994 (see Washington Declaration). As a result, an Israeli-Jordanian peace treaty was concluded on October 26, 1994. Following the outbreak of Israeli-Palestinian fighting in September 2000, the Jordanian government offered its good offices to both parties. Jordan has since sought to remain at peace with all of its neighbors.

On November 9, 2005, Jordan experienced three simultaneous bombings at hotels in Amman. At least 57 people died and 115 were wounded. Al-Qaeda in Iraq, a group led by native Jordanian Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, claimed responsibility.

Tourism

In Jordan, Tourism makes a very important sector of the economy of Jordan. It is the geography of the land of Jordan, in addition to the political stability - compared to the surrounding Middle Eastern countries - that has made it the touristic attraction that it is now. Jordan has a variety of touristic attractions, ranging from Ancient places, nice natural areas for sight-seeing, sports, seas, as well as religion.

Ancient Sight-seeing
Petra in Ma'an, the home of Nabateans, is a complete city carved in a mountain. The rocks are colorful, mostly pink, and the entrance to the ancient city is a long, narrow, crack in the mountain - called the Siq. In the city are various structures, all (except 2) are carved in rock, including the treasury, which is now nominated by the New Seven Wonders organisation to be on of the New Seven Wonders of the World.
Umm Qais, a town located on the site of the ruined Hellenistic-Roman city of Gadara
Ajlun, famous for the Islamic al-Rabadh Castle
Jerash, famous for its its ancient Roman architecture, like columns and arches.
Amman contains the Roman theater, in addition to several museums.
Al Karak, which contains an important castle at the times of Salah al-Din, known as Al-Karak Castle.

Religion-related
Madaba is probably the center for religion-related tourism in Jordan, containing important religious objects
The Madaba Map
River Jordan
Mount Nebo
Seas
The Dead Sea, for the unusual floating and natural salts that occur excessively.
Aqaba is a very fine touristic city, famous for its sea, shopping centers, hotels, and water sports.
Others
Wadi Rum is a desert full of mountains and hills located south of Jordan. It is popular for its wonderful sights in addition to a variety of sports that could be practiced there, such as rock-climbing.
Amman is a very modern city with lots of malls, shopping centers, hotels, etc.