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Hussein bin Talal (Arabic: حسين بن طلال, Ḥusayn bin...
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Hussein bin Talal (Arabic: حسين بن طلال, Ḥusayn bin Ṭalāl; 14 November 1935 -- 7 February 1999) was King of Jordan from the abdication of his father, King Talal, in 1952, until his death. Hussein's rule extended through the Cold War and four decades of Arab-Israeli conflict. He recognized Israel in 1994, becoming the second Arab head of state to do so.
Hussein's family claims to descent from the Islamic prophet Muhammad and his clan.
In March 1956 Hussein was appointed the King of Jordan, and burnished his own nationalist credentials by dismissing Glubb "Pasha" as the commander of the Jordanian Army, and replacing all the British officers with Jordanians. This now mainly Bedouin army was fiercely loyal to him, due to tribal connections.
Hussein's rule was marred with secret collaboration with Israel and the United States, which often adversely affected the surrounding Arab States and peoples, including the Palestinians. Secret meetings between King Hussein and Israeli foreign ministers Abba Eban and Golda Meir began on or before 1963. At first the meetings took place in London at the home of Dr. Emanuel Herbert, King Hussein's physician. Dr. Herbert, a Jew who desired to help Hussein and the Israeli government became the confidential go-between for contact between Israel and Jordan. Jordan, sharing the longest contiguous border with Israel was very interested in maintaining a peaceful posture towards Israel. As Avi Shlaim states Hussein's "...purpose throughout the 1960s was to see if there was any way to resolve the dispute with Israel peacefully."
King Hussein sought to understand Israel's position and preferred dialogue to the futility of war with its many dangers. Much of this desire grows out of the threat from other Arab states, specifically the Ba'athist regimes in Iraq and Syria and Nasser's ideology of Arab nationalism which had heavily influenced the Army. The first secret meeting took place on September 24, 1963 between King Hussein and Yaacov Herzog, a diplomat with wide experience and special emissary of prime minister Levi Eshkol. Among other things such as discussions regarding water rights, the purpose of the meetings were to plan and support Israeli and Jordanian initiatives in combating Fatah guerrillas. Hussein accepted minor raids into Jordanian territory by the Israeli Defence Forces. He would later state "I told them I could not absorb a serious retaliatory raid, and they accepted the logic of this and promised there would never be one."
On Nov 13, 1966, Israeli military conducted a major incursion into Jordanian territory, violating their secret agreement with King Hussein, in what became known as the Samu Incident.
Perception of King Hussein's secret collaboration with Israel led to great dissatisfaction of his rule both at home and throughout the Arab World. President Gamal Abdul Nasser of Egypt often referred to Hussein as "an "imperialist lackey." Army Commander-in-Chief General Sharif Zaid Ben Shaker warned in a press conference that "If Jordan does not join the war a civil war will erupt in Jordan." In order to maintain credibility in the Arab world and maintain stability at home, on May 30, 1967, King Hussein signed a mutual defense treaty with Egypt, and handed over command of the Jordanian military to Egyptian generals.
In June 1967, as a result of what later became known as the Six-Day War Jordan lost control of the West Bank and east Jerusalem and saw its military shattered. In addition the country was, for a second time, over-run with many Palestinian refugees, fleeing the Israeli assault. Much like after the 1948 war, Israel did not allow the fleeing refugees to return to the territories it had captured during the war. As a result, Palestinian refugees who fled the 1948 and 1967 wars, outnumbered Jordan's natural citizens. Most refugees were provided citizenship by the Hussein regime. Due to their sheer numbers, Palestinian factions in Jordan were able to exercise considerable authority essentially governing some areas of Jordan, leading to many considering them a state within a state, eroding Hussein's central authority.
In September, 1970, in accordance with secret agreements with Israel and the US, Hussein ordered the forcible expulsion of the Palestine Liberation Organization by the Jordanian military. The attacks on Palestinian fighters and civilians further deteriorated King Hussein's image in the Arab and Muslim world.
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