Last week I reported that a major Netflix movie, The Old Story, was being filmed in Jordan as a stand-in for Israel, and filming was stopped when angry residents complained that Jews would be present for a scene where a terrorist hides in a mosque after a bombing.
Now, the Minister of Islamic Affairs in Jordan is trying to reassure residents that they have nothing to fear.
After investigation, he is pleased to announce that not a single Jew is involved in the filming in Jordan.
In a press conference, minister Abdullah al-Abbadi said that the filming in the mosque of Abu Nusair al-Kabir does not harm the Islamic religion and "there is no form of normalization with the occupation. "
In a meeting with the parliamentary committee to discuss the subject of the film yesterday he denied the presence of any Jews in the film, stressing that the only people involved were Jordanians and Palestinians and non-Jewish foreigners.
He said the production company has vowed not to insult any religion, but rather to spread tolerance and peace among people, and not to carry out any bombings inside the mosque and to return the mosque to its previous state in the event of any damage. He also said that the film "serves our cause," i.e., it won't make anyone look bad but Israelis.
He also said that the the American producer of the film donated over $42,000 to the mosque.
The deputy head of the committee, Yahya al-Saud, adopted a memorandum of confidence in the Minister of Awqaf, Nasser Abu al-Basal, against the backdrop of filming the film, stressing that the Jordanian people reject any normalization with the "occupation."
"Occupation" is, of course, how Jordan and other Arab states refer to all of Israel.