Jordan has recalled its envoy from the Israeli-occupied territories in protest at the Israeli regime’s relentless attacks on the Gaza Strip.
Jordan’s Foreign Minister Ayman Safadi said on Wednesday that relations between the Arab country and the Israeli regime would only return to normal once Israel stops killing civilians in Gaza and lifts a crippling siege that has deprived people of the territory of food, water and medicine.
Safadi said in a statement carried by state media that the Israeli regime’s ambassador to Jordan, who left the Arab country two weeks ago amid widespread anti-Israeli protests, would only be allowed to return to Amman on the same conditions.
“This is to express Jordan’s stance that rejects and condemns the Israeli war on Gaza that kills innocents and is causing an unprecedented humanitarian catastrophe,” he said.
The minister said the decision was also aimed at showing Jordan’s disapproval of an Israeli siege on Gaza which has deprived people of the territory of basic necessities.
Israel has killed nearly 8,800 people in Gaza since October 7 when it launched aerial bombardments on the territory to compensate for losses suffered in an operation by the Palestinian resistance movement Hamas.
The Israeli aggression, which has expanded to include ground incursions into Gaza, has caused a dire humanitarian situation in the small territory on the Mediterranean where more than 2.3 million people have lived for years under Israeli restrictions.
Jordan, which borders Palestinian territories to the west, is home to the largest population of the Palestinian diaspora with anti-Israeli sentiment running deep in the country.
In his Wednesday statement, Safadi said that Jordan was stepping up diplomatic efforts to pressure Israel to stop its aggression in Gaza while warning that a spread of the conflict to other parts of the region would bring “dangerous risks.”
