Is Jordan the next victim of the "Arab Spring?"

From Ammon News:

Bordering the media headline-grabbing countries of Israel, Syria, Iraq and Saudi Arabia, Jordan is sometimes overlooked because of its peace with Israel, its close alliance with the US and its relatively liberal socio-economic system.

However, the Hashemite kingdom is plagued by a number of economic and social problems that threaten to plunge Jordan into its own Arab Spring.

At its heart, the Arab Spring was about economics, being sparked by poor and desperate people unable to make ends meet. Many are wondering which country will be affected next.

In Jordan, over 70 per cent of the population is less than 30 years old.

The unofficial unemployment rate stands at one in three, and growing.

Jordan Employment Agency spokesperson Haithan Alkhasawni said: “It’s known that Jordan’s debt is getting higher when we compare it to people’s income. Also, we have the unemployment problem, it is very high.”

Unlike its attention-grabbing neighbours of Syria, Iraq and Saudi Arabia, Jordan has remained relatively peaceful, until now.

Its royal family is an absolute monarchy and many people are afraid to speak out against the kingdom.

Israeli political analyst Ron Pundak said: "Jordan is more democratic than many others and the freedom of speech is… relatively not so bad, but it is still not an open liberal Western society.”

At the moment, Jordan is at peace with Israel.

It also enjoys a close alliance with the US and has a relatively liberal socio-economic system which explains why the country is so often overlooked by the media.

However, that doesn't mean Jordan has been left untouched.

Two and a half years ago, Jordanians went to the streets to protest.

They were concerned about rising prices and inflation and wanted limits placed on King Abdullah's powers.

However, things are reaching a head, with the unrest in Syria creating a humanitarian disaster for the kingdom of six million people.

More than half a million Syrian refugees now live in Jordan -- accounting for about 10 per cent of the population.

The Za'atri refugee camp in northern Jordan -- which houses Syrian refugees -- is now Jordan's fourth largest city.

As things heat up on its other borders, Jordan needs all the friends it can get and its western neighbour, Israel, is only more than happy to oblige. However, Amman's friendship with Tel Aviv makes Jordan unpopular with many in the Arab world.

Jordanians are hoping that in a region that has seen its own fair share of drama, their country does not join the circus.

They hope that it would not have to take an Arab Spring to get their government to sit up and listen.

The article ignores the role that Islamists play in Arab turmoil. Jordan has an active Muslim Brotherhood which is itching to ignite protests that it can parlay into political leadership.

It also ignores the fact that peace with Israel - even though it does benefit Jordan both directly and indirectly - is unpopular among the antisemitic Jordanians (only 2% of Jordanians had a favorable impression of Jews in 2011.)