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| Jordanian prince may seek kingdom in Iraq |
| 2004-02-23 |
| Prince Hassan’s hope to visit Iraq soon is sparking fresh speculation the one-time heir to the Jordanian throne - unceremoniously dumped by his dying brother after three decades of grooming - is a prince in search of a kingdom. An aide to the prince denied the talk Monday, but such concerns have in the past forced Hassan’s nephew, King Abdullah II, to insist Jordan’s royal family has no designs on ruling neighboring Iraq. Last week, Hassan told Al-Arabiya satellite channel that he plans a visit to Baghdad "soon" to try to mediate political disputes among factions in the country. He did not say whom he would meet. The aide, speaking on condition of anonymity, said Hassan is waiting to be invited. Asked what Hassan would do in Iraq, the aide said he "will try to facilitate negotiations among the different sects. He will try to mediate between the Sunnis and the Shiites to restore peace and stability in Iraq." He rejected any idea the prince ultimately hopes to restore Hashemite rule to Iraq, with himself as king, as "absolute nonsense." Concern about Hassan’s ambitions has cropped up before, most notably with his surprise appearance at a 2002 London meeting of Iraqi dissidents plotting to topple Saddam Hussein. Three months later, King Abdullah was forced to publicly, if gently, rebuke his 56-year-old uncle. "I am the head of the Hashemite dynasty and I say very clearly that this family has no ambitions to regain leadership in Iraq," Abdullah said. Foreign leadership cannot be imposed, he added, and "if there was any member of this family who thinks in a different way, then that member only represents himself." Hassan had been groomed for the Jordanian throne for 34 years until 12 days before his brother, King Hussein, died of cancer in 1999. Hussein accused Hassan of a power grab by trying to dismiss the king’s loyalists in the army and cited policy differences in appointing his son, Abdullah, as his successor. On Monday, Jordanian government officials declined comment on Hassan’s plans, but indicated that if he visited Iraq, he would be acting on his own. In Baghdad, an Iraqi official said the prince has not been in contact with the Iraqi Governing Council and no plans to invite him were under consideration by any Iraqi authority. An Iraqi political activist said the prince has been meeting in Jordan with some Iraqi tribal and religious leaders, trying to persuade them to support his involvement in resolving Iraq’s political conflict. "He does not tell them openly that he aspires to a leading role, like being a king of Iraq, but this is what everybody feels when they meet him," said the activist, who is now in Baghdad after long being based in Jordan. Since being shunted aside as crown prince in 1999, Hassan has kept a low profile in Jordan. The Oxford graduate of oriental studies has focused on intellectual pursuits, including chairing an Amman-based think tank, called the Arab Thought Forum, and acting as a moderator for the New York-based World Conference on Religions for Peace. |
| Posted by:Dan Darling |
| #1 I kind of like the idea of Iraq being ruled by a King. It would solve a lot of problems vis-a-vis 'transfer of power.' How about we name him Viceroy, Lord, Royal Protector? He does come from one of the more moderate Arab states. |
| Posted by: Cyber Sarge (VRWC CA Chapter) 2004-2-23 4:43:03 PM |