Jordan: Israel sets conditions for renewal of water contract

2024-04-07T18:10:16.944Z

Highlights: Jordan: Israel sets conditions for renewal of water contract. The contract on water supplied by Israel to Jordan ends next May. Jordan gets 50 million cubic meters of irrigation water from Israel every year. The latter are forcing Amman to alienate part of the Jordanian population, at a time when there are daily demonstrations regarding the war in Gaza. According to several Israeli media, the Jewish state has stipulated that Jordan will have to restore “ normal ” diplomatic relations between the two countries.

The contract on water supplied by Israel to Jordan ends next May. The Hashemite kingdom asked the Hebrew State for a renewal of this contract. However, although Israel has not yet responded…

Jordan: Israel sets conditions for renewal of water contract

The contract on water supplied by Israel to Jordan ends next May. The Hashemite kingdom asked the Hebrew State for a renewal of this contract. However, although Israel has not yet responded favorably to this request, it is setting its conditions. The latter are forcing Amman to alienate part of the Jordanian population, at a time when there are daily demonstrations regarding the war in Gaza.

People demonstrate in support of Palestinians in Gaza, amid the ongoing conflict between Israel and Hamas, near the Israeli embassy in Amman, Jordan, April 5, 2024. © REUTERS - Alaa Al Sukhni

By: RFI Follow

With our correspondent in Amman

Mohamed Errami

By the end of the month, the deal to supply Jordan with water from Israel

will

have expired. Renewing it won't be easy this time. Because according to several Israeli media, the Jewish state has stipulated that Jordan will have to restore “

normal

” diplomatic relations

between the two countries and limit its hostile and inflammatory statements against Israel regarding the war in Gaza, in order to be able to renew the agreement.

Omar Salama, the spokesperson for the Ministry of Water in Jordan, considers

the renewal of the agreement “

important ” “

because of the water reality in Jordan. We are facing a deficit of almost 500 million cubic meters of water per year.

Despite the critical need for water, the kingdom faces the reality of street protests. Israeli conditions for a renewal of the water contract sparked rallies all weekend in the streets of Amman against any form of normalization between Jordan and Tel Aviv. Hicham demonstrated this weekend because he believes that such an “

agreement would harm Jordanian sovereignty and place all Jordanians under the control and blackmail of Israel, especially with the presence of this far-right government [in Israel]

.”

Jordan gets 50 million cubic meters of irrigation water from Israel every year. A quantity essential to Jordan's agricultural and civil needs.

Jordan: Israel sets conditions for renewal of water contract

Jordan: Israel sets conditions for renewal of water contract

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