Israel–Jordan peace treaty

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Israel–Jordan Peace Treaty
Treaty of Peace Between the State of Israel and the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan
Bill Clinton watches Hussein of Jordan and Yitzhak Rabin signing papers
U.S. President Bill Clinton (center) watches Jordan's King Hussein (left) and Israeli Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin (right) sign the Washington Declaration on the White House lawn
TypePeace treaty
Signed26 October 1994; 29 years ago (1994-10-26)
LocationArabah, Israel
Signatories
Depositary
UNTS 35325
LanguageEnglish

The Israel–Jordan peace treaty (formally the "Treaty of Peace Between the State of Israel and the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan"),

state of war that has existed between the two countries since the 1948 Arab–Israeli War and established mutual diplomatic relations
. In addition to establishing peace between the two countries, the treaty also settled land and water disputes, provided for broad cooperation in tourism and trade, and obligated both countries to prevent their territory being used as a staging ground for military strikes by a third country.

The signing ceremony took place at the southern border crossing of Arabah on 26 October 1994. Jordan was the second Arab country, after Egypt, to sign a peace accord with Israel.[2]

History

In 1987 Israeli Foreign Affairs Minister

PLO.[3][4]

Discussions began in 1994.

Washington, DC, on 25 July 1994.[5] The Declaration says that Israel and Jordan ended the official state of enmity and would start negotiations in order to achieve an "end to bloodshed and sorrow" and a just and lasting peace.[6]

Signing

On 26 October 1994, Jordan and Israel signed the

balloons released into the sky ended the event.[citation needed
]

]

Content

The peace treaty consists of a preamble, 30 articles, 5 annexes, and agreed minutes. It settles issues about territory, security, water, and co-operation on a range of subjects.[7]

Annex I concerns borders and sovereignty. Section Annex I (a) establishes an "administrative boundary" between Jordan and the West Bank, occupied by Israel in 1967, without prejudice to the status of that territory. Israel recognises Jordan's sovereignty over the Naharayim/Baqura area (including Peace Island) and the Tzofar/Al Ghamr area.[9]
Annex II concerns water and related matters. Pursuant to Article 6 of the Treaty, Jordan and Israel agreed to establish a "Joint Water Committee" (Article VII).[10]
Annex III concerns crime and illicit drugs.[11]
Annex IV concerns environment.[12]
Annex V concerns border crossings, passports and visas. Article 6 stipulates that ″Each Party has the right to refuse entry to a person, in accordance with its regulations″.[13]
The Agreed Minutes of the treaty give some details about the implementation of the peace treaty.[14]

Main principles

  1. Borders: The international boundary between Israel and Jordan follows the Jordan and Yarmouk Rivers, the Dead Sea, the Emek Ha'Arava/Wadi Araba, and the Gulf of Aqaba.[9] The section of the line that separated Jordan from the West Bank was stipulated as "without prejudice to the status of [that] territory."[9]
  2. Diplomatic relations and co-operation: The Parties agreed to establish full
    visas, open air travel and seaports, establish a free trade zone and an industrial park in the Arava. The agreement prohibits hostile propaganda
    .
  3. Security and defense: Each country promised respect for the sovereignty and territory of each side, to not enter the other's territory without permission, and to cooperate against terrorism. This included thwarting border attacks, smuggling, preventing any hostile attack against the other and not cooperating with any terrorist organization against the other.
  4. Jerusalem: Article 9 links the Peace Treaty to the Israeli–Palestinian peace process. Israel recognized the special role of Jordan in Muslim Holy shrines in Jerusalem and committed itself to give high priority to the Jordanian historic role in these shrines in negotiations on the permanent status.
  5. Water: Israel agreed to give Jordan 50,000,000 cubic metres (1.8×109 cu ft) of water each year and for Jordan to own 75% of the water from the
    reservoirs and agreed to help each other survive droughts. Israel also agreed to help Jordan use desalination technology in order to find additional water.[15]
  6. Palestinian refugees: Israel and Jordan agreed to cooperate to help the refugees, including a four-way committee (Israel, Jordan, Egypt and the Palestinians) to try to work towards solutions.

Follow-up

Following the agreements, Israel and Jordan opened their borders. Several border-crossings were erected, allowing tourists, businessmen and workers to travel between the two countries.[16] Israeli tourists started to visit Jordan, many to see the sela ha'adom ("Red Rock") of Petra – a stone-carved city of the Nabataeans which had fascinated Israelis during the 1950s and 1960s, often luring adventurers to visit it secretly.

On 4 November 1995 the Israeli Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin was assassinated by a Jewish extremist, who aimed to undermine Rabin's peace efforts with the Palestinians.[17] Due to the close relationship forged with Rabin during the negotiations of the treaty, Hussein was invited to give a speech during Rabin's funeral in Jerusalem.[17] This was the first time Hussein had been in Jerusalem since the 1967 war.[17] Hussein drew parallels between Rabin's assassination and his grandfather's assassination in 1951: "We are not ashamed, nor are we afraid, nor are we anything but determined to continue the legacy for which my friend fell, as did my grandfather in this city when I was with him and but a boy."[17]

Jordan's signing of a peace treaty with Israel, and other issues, were met with disdain by Syria's president

Hafez Al-Assad.[18] The CIA handed the King a detailed report in December 1995 warning him of a Syrian plot to assassinate him and his brother Hassan.[18] A month later, the CIA sent Hussein another report warning Jordan of Iraqi plots to attack Western targets in Jordan to undermine Jordan's security due to its support for the Iraqi opposition.[18] In Israel, Shimon Peres of the leftist Labor Party and Benjamin Netanyahu of the right-wing Likud party, were competing for the post of prime minister.[18] Hussein's popularity in Israel had peaked after the peace treaty was signed, and he was expected to express support for a candidate.[18] Hussein initially remained neutral, but later expressed support for Netanyahu.[18] Efraim Halevy, then head of the Israeli intelligence agency (Mossad), claims that Hussein had preferred Netanyahu over Peres as he had deeply mistrusted the latter.[19] The Israeli general election held on 29 May 1996 witnessed Netanyahu's ascension to the prime ministry.[18]

Hussein's support for Netanyahu soon backfired.[20] Israel's actions during the 1996 Qana massacre in Southern Lebanon, the Likud government's decision to build settlements in East Jerusalem, and the events at the Temple Mount where clashes between Palestinian and Israeli police ensued after Israeli tunnel diggings around the Mount, generated an uproar of criticism for Netanyahu in the Arab World.[20] On 9 March 1997 Hussein sent Netanyahu a three-page letter expressing his disappointment.[20] The King lambasted Netanyahu, with the letter's opening sentence stating: "My distress is genuine and deep over the accumulating tragic actions which you have initiated at the head of the Government of Israel, making peace – the worthiest objective of my life – appear more and more like a distant elusive mirage."[21]

Four days later, on 13 March, a Jordanian soldier patrolling the borders between Jordan and Israel in the north near the Island of Peace, killed seven Israeli schoolgirls and wounded six others.[20] The King, who was on an official visit to Spain, returned home immediately.[20] He travelled to the Israeli town of Beit Shemesh to offer his condolences to the grieving families of the Israeli children killed.[20] He went on his knees in front of the families, telling them that the incident was "a crime that is a shame for all of us. I feel as if I have lost a child of my own. If there is any purpose in life it will be to make sure that all the children no longer suffer the way our generation did."[22] His gesture was received very warmly in Israel, and Hussein sent the families $1 million in total as compensation for the loss of life.[20] The soldier was determined to be mentally unstable by a Jordanian military tribunal and was sentenced to 20 years in prison, which he served entirely.[20]

Clashes between Israeli forces and Palestinian militant groups in Gaza and the West Bank surfaced.[20] Hussein's wife, Queen Noor, later claimed her husband was having trouble sleeping: "Everything he had worked for all his life, every relationship he had painstakingly built on trust and respect, every dream of peace and prosperity he had had for Jordan's children, was turning into a nightmare. I really did not know how much more Hussein could take."[20]

On 27 September 1997 eight

special operations team headed by Hussein's son Abdullah was put in charge of the operation.[20] Hussein called American President Clinton and requested his intervention, threatening to annul the treaty if Israel did not provide the antidote.[20] Clinton later managed to get Israel's approval to reveal the name of the antidote, and complained about Netanyahu: "This man is impossible!"[20] Khaled Mashal recovered, but Jordan's relations with Israel deteriorated and Israeli requests to contact Hussein were rebuffed.[20] The Mossad operatives were released by Jordan after Israel agreed to release 23 Jordanian and 50 Palestinian prisoners including Sheikh Ahmed Yassin.[20]

Mounting opposition in Jordan to the peace treaty with Israel led Hussein to put greater restrictions on freedom of speech.[20] Several dissidents were imprisoned including Laith Shubeilat, a prominent Islamist. A few months into his imprisonment, the King personally gave Shubeilat, his fiercest critic, a ride home from the Swaqa prison.[23] However, the crackdown led the opposition groups in Jordan to boycott the 1997 parliamentary elections.[20] In 1998 Jordan refused a secret request from Netanyahu to attack Iraq using Jordanian airspace after claiming Saddam held weapons of mass destruction.[20]

In December 2013, Israel and Jordan signed an agreement to build a desalination plant on the Red Sea, near the Jordanian port of Aqaba, as part of the

Red Sea–Dead Sea Canal.[24]

In October 2018, Jordan notified Israel of its intention not to renew lands leased under Annex I of the agreement. The annex granted Jordan the right not to renew the lease of Naharayim (Baqoura) and Tzofar/Al Ghamr after 25 years, given that a notice is given a year prior.[25]

Gallery

  • Shimon Peres (left) with Yitzhak Rabin (center) and King Hussein of Jordan (right), prior to signing the Israel–Jordan peace treaty.
    Shimon Peres (left) with Yitzhak Rabin (center) and King Hussein of Jordan (right), prior to signing the Israel–Jordan peace treaty.
  • A handshake between King Hussein and PM Rabin, accompanied by President Clinton, during the Israel-Jordan peace negotiations, 25 July 1994
    A handshake between King Hussein and PM Rabin, accompanied by President Clinton, during the Israel-Jordan peace negotiations, 25 July 1994
  • Balloons released into the air during the Israel-Jordan Peace Treaty signing ceremony at the Arava Terminal
    Balloons released into the air during the Israel-Jordan Peace Treaty signing ceremony at the Arava Terminal
  • King Hussein lights Yitzhak Rabin's cigarette at the royal residence in Aqaba, shortly after the signing of the peace treaty, 26 October 1994
    King Hussein lights Yitzhak Rabin's cigarette at the royal residence in Aqaba, shortly after the signing of the peace treaty, 26 October 1994
  • U.S. President Bill Clinton watches Jordan's King Hussein and Israeli Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin shaking hands, October 1994
    U.S. President Bill Clinton watches Jordan's King Hussein and Israeli Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin shaking hands, October 1994
  • Excerpts from the signing of the peace agreement with Jordan in a video clip of the Channel 2 news company, 1994

See also

Notes

  1. Arabic transliteration
    : Mu'ahadat as-Salaam al-'Urdunniyah al-Isra'yliyah

References

  1. ^ Ahren, Raphael; Rasgon, Adam. "Colder than ever: 25 years on, Israel and Jordan ignore peace treaty anniversary". www.timesofisrael.com. Retrieved 26 October 2020.
  2. ^ Clyde Haberman (27 October 1994). "Israel and Jordan Sign a Peace Accord". The New York Times. Retrieved 22 September 2022.
  3. ^ Disengagement from the West Bank. www.kinghussein.gov.jo. Retrieved December 2013
  4. ^ Hussein surrenders claims on West Bank to the P.L.O.; U.S. peace plan in jeopardy; Internal Tensions. John Kifner, New York Times, 1 August 1988
  5. ^ The Washington Declaration :Israel – Jordan – The United States; July 25th, 1994. On the Avalon project
  6. ^ "The Washington Declaration". Israel Ministry of Foreign Affairs. 25 July 1994. Retrieved 7 May 2012.
  7. ^ a b Treaty of Peace Between the State of Israel and the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan. 26 October 1994. On the Knesset website
  8. ^ THE JORDAN-ISRAEL ACCORD: THE OVERVIEW; ISRAEL AND JORDAN SIGN A PEACE ACCORD, New York Times, 26 October 1994
  9. ^ a b c Annex I.jewishvirtuallibrary
  10. ^ Annex II—Water and Related Matters. IMFA, 25 August 1999
  11. ^ Annex III—Combatting Crime and Drugs.jewishvirtuallibrary
  12. ^ Annex IV—Environment.jewishvirtuallibrary
  13. ^ Annex V—Border Crossing Points Procedures Between Israel and Jordan.jewishvirtuallibrary
  14. ^ "Israel-Jordan Peace Treaty—Agreed Minutes". www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org. Retrieved 12 November 2017.
  15. ^ Susskind, Lawrence; Shafiqul Islam (2012). "Water Diplomacy: Creating Value and Building Trust in Transboundary Water Negotiations". Science & Diplomacy. 1 (3).
  16. . Retrieved 12 November 2017 – via Google Books.
  17. ^ a b c d Shlaim 2009, p. 532–546.
  18. ^ a b c d e f g Shlaim 2009, p. 547–560.
  19. ISBN 9781429904988. {{cite book}}: |work= ignored (help
    )
  20. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y Shlaim 2009, p. 560–581.
  21. ^ "In Their Own Words: The Views of Hussein and Netanyahu". The New York Times. 12 March 1997. Retrieved 20 December 2019.
  22. ^ Jerrold Kessel (16 March 1997). "With condolence visit to Israel, King Hussein spurs talks". CNN. Retrieved 22 February 2011.
  23. ^ "King Hussein Gives His Foe Ride From Jail". The New York Times. Reuters. 10 November 1996. Retrieved 4 December 2018.
  24. ^ Vick, Karl (9 December 2013). "Can an Unlikely Middle East Pact Give Life to the Dead Sea?". Time. Retrieved 12 November 2017 – via world.time.com.
  25. ^ Jordan to nix parts of peace treaty with Israel, reclaim territories, YNET, 21 October 2018

Bibliography

External links