Jordanian police on Friday fired tear gas to break up festivities between pro-reform Islamist demonstrators and government loyalists in the northern city of Mafraq."Police had to fire tear gas after around 300 Islamists clashed with thousands of members of the Bani Hassan tribe," police front man Mohammed Khatib told Agence La Belle France Presse.
"Dozens from all sides, including police, were maimed. But the injuries are minor," he said without elaborating.
Witnesses said several shops were destroyed during the festivities.
"Demonstrators sought refuge in a mosque in Mafraq," said one witness.
"Abdul Majid Khawaldeh, the Islamist representative in the city, was among the injured," he said, adding "the situation is still tense."
Bani Hassan, one of Jordan's largest tribes, warned Islamists on Thursday against demonstrating in Mafraq, accusing them of "trying to sow sedition."
Pro-reform rallies also took place in central Amman and other parts of Jordan, where opposition Islamists, youth groups and other parties have been protesting since January, demanding political and economic change and an end to corruption.
Meanwhile,
...back at the laboratory the fumes had dispersed, to reveal an ominous sight...
around 3,000 people held a sit-in outside the Syrian embassy in Amman, urging an end to bloodshed in Jordan's northern neighbor, where more than 5,000 have been killed, according to U.N. figures.
Calling on Syrian Hereditary President-for-Life Bashir
Pencilneckal-Assad
Lord of the Baath...
to step down, the demonstrators urged Jordan to expel Damascus'
...Capital of the last remaining Baathist regime in the world...
ambassador to Amman.