From the Dept. of What Does This Mean?
King Abdullah II stripped his half brother and heir apparent of his title as crown prince in an abrupt shake-up Sunday aimed at redeeming the full power the king inherited from his late father. He told Prince Hamzah in an emotional televised message that he had decided to "free" him "from the constraints of the position of crown prince in order to give you the freedom to work and undertake any mission or responsibility I entrust you with."
| "Hello, Mutual of Gaza, this is Prince Hamzah. Yes. Hamzah. From Jordan. H - A - M - Z - A - H. Well, I'd like to purchase some life insur .... what? What does that mean? Why are you laughing so?" |
Abdullah had chosen Hamzah, now a 24-year-old American college student, hours after their father - King Hussein - died of cancer in February 1999. The designation was out of respect for Hussein, who is known to have favored Hamzah the most among his 11 children from four marriages. But Abdullah and his brothers had "reached mutual consent on the need for change," a senior government official told The Associated Press on condition of anonymity. He declined to say if Hamzah, who returned home Friday on a college break, was present. Abdullah was making this move "to tell everyone that he's firmly on the saddle," said Jordanian political analyst Labib Kamhawi Kamhawi.
Mahmoud Kharabsheh, a longtime member of parliament's Legal Committee, said the change was in line with the constitution, which says the crown must go to Abdullah's eldest son - Hussein, now age 10 - or his eldest brother, Faisal, but not to Hamzah, who is one of the king's younger brothers. A senior aide to the king said the move had no political ramifications. |