On 18 November 2022, Jordan’s king’s son and Crown Prince, Hussein, paid a visit to the wake of Abdul Majeed Thunibat, former leader of the Jordanian Muslim Brotherhood. The visit was highly publicized by the state-controlled Jordanian media. The story about the visit of condolences was a front page item in most Jordanian daily papers and on all Jordanian news sites. The king and his son were shoving the visit in everyone’s faces.
The significance of this visit is far beyond what meets the eyes of average Western observers and the so-called “Middle East experts”. The visit came at a time both the king and queen of Jordan are striving hard to polish their son’s image as an eligible successor to his father. Indeed, the young prince recently has been promoted by the Jordanian state media as the upcoming knight in shining armor. His name has lately been circulating in the Jordanian media more than his father’s. Therefore, this visit was more significant than many may think.
For a starter, prince Hussein visited the wake of the late Muslim Brotherhood leader dressed in combat uniform. A quick google search of Hussein’s images would reveal he rarely wears a military uniform. To put this in context, the person whose wake Hussei was attending is one of the militarized leaders of the Muslim Brotherhood group. Abdul Majeed Thunibat is known for his jihadist ideology legacy. This should come as no surprise, as he had served as the leader of the Muslim Brotherhood group during a very critical period between 1994 and 2006. Some of the most traumatic terror attacks that have rattled the world, including 9-11, took place during this particular period. At the same time, it is necessary to note that the Muslim Brotherhood is the Harvard of all terror groups with a list of alumni that includes Osama Bin Laden, Ayman Zawahiri and ISIS caliph Abu Baker Baghdadi to name a few.
So, what does this mean?
It simply means the crown prince is sending a message to the world that he is going continue his father’s alliance with the Muslim Brotherhood radical group. An alliance that is not new at all, and one that has been extensively documented. The king and his wife are not even shy about their alliance with the radical group. The king is not even afraid to confirm his alliance with the Muslim Brotherhood to Western journalists. He told the Atlantic Magazine in a 2013 interview that “The Muslim Brotherhood are a part of the system”.
In that interview, the king described the nature of interaction he has with the Muslim Brotherhood, with an example of his most recent meeting with them then, in which he said to them “I think we all leave this meeting feeling good, but—I’ll be honest with you—there’s 10 percent distrust from me, and 10 percent distrust from you, I’m sure. But we have good vibes here.”
So, according to the king’s own words, he trusts the Muslim Brotherhood at 90 percent.
Further, on 21 September 2016, the king’s wife, Rania, told CNN’s Christiane Amanpour “We welcome the fact that the Muslim Brotherhood is participating [in the elections] because we want them to be inclusive elections” Of course, Rania did not mention the fact that her husband, the king, had imposed laws that retroactively shut down most secular political parties and were almost tailored to the benefit of the Muslim Brotherhood as the only “legal” party. Abdullah Al-Akylah, a senior Muslim Brotherhood leader said right after the group met the king “We have always supported the regime at every corner”.
Worth noting, many Western journalists extensively promote the king of Jordan as a peacemaker and “a warrior who fights terrorists”. Nonetheless, his ties to the Muslim Brotherhood radical group run deep. The king and his regime have been proven to trade with the Islamist State in Iraq and Syria (ISIS) when the terror group was at its prime before Trump destroyed it. For example, Jordan’s king’s very own intelligence service has been caught red-handed selling to ISIS American weapons, meant for the secular Syrian opposition.
In addition, British ammunition stolen from Jordanian army camps found its way to ISIS in Syria as documented by the world’s media. This makes the king himself responsible as he is the head of Jordan’s Armed Forces. Also, Toyota trucks sold to the Jordanian Government by the thousands were found with ISIS. As of now, the king has not bothered to dismiss or even deny the reports of his regime’s dealings with ISIS.
It is important for America in particular to see Jordan’s king for who is; an ally of the Muslim Brotherhood, the fertile mother of all Islamist terror groups. The king is not shy about it, and his son’s latest move has made it clear he will be following his father’s lead.
It is safe to say that Jordan is not immune to regime change. Therefore, America must be careful and alert for the water beneath the surface in a country where America has thousands of troops stationed. American decision makers and legislators must see the truth about the king of Jordan.
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