AMMAN — Speculations that Jordan would allow Iranians to visit
holy
shrines in Jordan caused a heated debate that has continued over the past
few days, as pundits, columnists, and journalists continued to voice their
opinions on the topic.
اضافة اعلان
The debate was sparked after one of the members of the Royal
Committee for Political Modernization Zaid Nabulsi wrote a piece highlighting
the benefits of Iranian religious tourism, only days after His Majesty the King
visited the holy shrines south of the Kingdom prior to his departure to
Baghdad.
Nabulsi published an opinion piece last week promoting the
benefits of allowing religious
tourism for Iranians on both the economic and
job creation fronts.
"To all those who are loyal to this nation, I call upon you
to put aside your prejudice and to leave your political linings and sectarian
positions for one minute. Let us look at this solely from an economic
perspective. The Jordanian south has suffered for decades from marginalization,
lack of opportunities and unemployment. ... You can imagine the instant economic
recovery that could be achieved if the sad south became a destination for
millions of tourists who bring in hard currency?," wrote Nabulsy.
Hasan Almomani, international relations professor at the University
of Jordan, was among the first to respond; He tweeted saying: "tourism is
undoubtedly very important; however, sectarian and politicized tourism is a
recipe that is incomprehensive and does not serve the state's interests."
Former MP Khalaf Zyoud, in his opinion piece in Addstour, rejected
any form of relations with Iran as he saw that the Islamic nation is to be
blamed for the sectarian war in the region.
“We do not want political or tourism relations with Iran. We
reject having relations with a nation that created the division between Sunnis
and
Shiites ... we do not want it (Iran) to exploit the Kingdom's economic
situation and infiltrate Jordanian's values," wrote Zyoud.
Maher Abu Tair, a veteran columnist, wrote in Al-Ghad daily
predicting that Jordan will not open its doors to Iranian tourism for security
and political reasons.
"The public still links the situation in Arab nations which
saw Iranian interference (in internal affairs) and the Iranians coming into
Jordan. This link suggests that allowing Iranians to Jordan will lead to major
security repercussions and a wave of gradual Shiitism in Jordan similar to the
one we witnessed during the Hezbollah-Israel wars."
In a previous interview with
Jordan News, Bassam Omoush, a former
minister and ambassador to Iran said: “I said in front of the King 10 years ago
that Jordan was threatened by two sides at the time: (Sunni) extremists and
Shiism.
“The Iranians have clear interests, outwardly spreading Shiitism,
and deep down political influence,” charging that there have been underground
Iranian schemes targeting Jordan’s security.
Makram Tarawneh, editor-in-chief at Al-Ghad daily, wrote in his
column saying: "Expanding our options does not mean opening to nations whose
goals and intentions we realize and we witness their actions in several Arab
countries pushing these countries further into instability by interfering in their
internal matters and violating their sovereignty."
Al-Ghad's editor wondered if “allowing Iranian tourists worth what
we will lose in economic benefit and years-long relations with nations that do
not see Iran as a factor of stability due to its expansionism policy and
interference."
Naseem Enayzat wrote in Addstuor — a quasi-governmental newspaper-
pointed to the absence of an "impartial third opinion" regarding
Jordan opening up to Iran and allowing Iranians to visit holy shrines.
"… in light of the change in the American administration and
the departure of Trump, we can make use of the circumstances and reshuffle our
cards to reach a dynamic that allows Jordan to receive Iranian religious
tourists according to conditions and restrictions that we (Jordan) put in
place."
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