Jordan Pro-Government Demo Called Off over Unrest Fears
A demonstration in support of Jordan's King Abdullah II has been called off over fears of unrest as it coincides with a pro-reform rally by the Islamist opposition on Friday, organizers said.
"We have postponed indefinitely our demonstration scheduled at the same time as the Muslim Brotherhood's to avoid any problems," said Jihad al-Sheik, head of an Internet-based youth group that organized the event.
The cancellation came "after a request to that effect from the director of general security, Hussein al-Majali, MPs and tribal leaders" to prevent unrest.
Around 200,000 people had been expected to turn up at the demonstration in Amman to show their support for King Abdullah's efforts to bring in reforms.
The Muslim Brotherhood said, meanwhile, that it was going ahead with its planned rally in central Amman by an estimated 50,000 supporters.
But its political arm, the Islamic Action Front, said on its website that one of its members, Tareq al-Jawabra, was arrested on Thursday for "distributing invitations to the demonstration".
Jawabra was accused of "undermining the dignity of the king" and would be held for investigations for one week until he is to appear before the state security court, the website said.
Numerous demonstrations have taken place in Jordan since January 2011 to call for political and economic reforms and demand an end to corruption.
In response, King Abdullah has announced early elections and hopes they will take place before the end of 2012.
The Brotherhood says it would boycott the polls as they did in 2010 to protest against the lack of real reforms, while calling for a parliamentary system where the prime minister is elected, rather than named by the king.
Their demonstration, dubbed "The Friday of the country's salvation," calls for Islamists to march from Al-Husseini mosque after midday prayers to Al-Nakhil Square, about a kilometer (half a mile) away.
Source: Agence France Presse
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