Jordan's king appoints new prime minister

[megimoo]

Feb 1 - Close U.S. ally Jordan's King Abdullah on Tuesday asked his former ex-military adviser Marouf Bakhit to form a new cabinet, an official said.

snip

"He (Bakhit) is a former general and briefly ambassador to Israel who has been prime minister before. He's someone who would be seen as a safe pair of hands. I wouldn't see it as a sign of liberalization. With his previous premiership, he talked the talk of reform but little actually happened."

ADNAN ABU ODEH, FORMER ROYAL COURT CHIEF

"It has been a very positive step by His Majesty because in a way it's a response to the demands of the people, who have stressed the necessity of changing the govt...

It's the same virus that afflicted Tunisia, Egypt and is afflicting all Arab states. The difference between one country and another is the (level of) immunity.

http://www.reuters.com/article/2011/02/01/us-jordan-government-idUSTRE7103I020110201

[Gingersnap]

Jordan's King Abdullah Dissolves Government

Published February 01, 2011

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Jan. 26: In this photo released by the Jordanian Royal Palace, King Abdullah II of Jordan speaks during a meeting with the Jordanian Senates in Amman, Jordan.


AMMAN, Jordan -- Jordan's King Abdullah II fired his government Tuesday in the wake of street protests and asked an ex-prime minister to form a new Cabinet, ordering him to launch immediate political reforms.

Read more: http://www.foxnews.com/world/2011/02/01/jordans-king-abdullah-dissolves-government/#ixzz1CikuqmWc

AP link.

[noonwitch]

I hope that prevents the problem from spreading to Jordan. I always liked Abdullah's father, King Hussein, and always felt badly for him that he shared a surname with Saddam.

[Odysseus]

And so it goes...

http://commentry.files.wordpress.com/2010/03/domino_image.jpg