Jordan’s bumpy relations with Syria

Amman: Amman has long had bumpy relations with Damascus because of its alliance with the United States — Jordan’s largest donor of economic and military aid — and its 1994 peace treaty with Israel.

Jordan would like to see the Syrian regime toppled because of growing concern that Bashar Al Assad’s key ally, Iran, is trying to spark Shiite uprisings in Arab countries ruled by Sunnis.

King Abdullah 11 was the first Arab leader to warn in 2004 of the sweep of Iran’s “Shiite crescent”, stretching from Lebanon through Syria and Iraq. Jordanian officials have advocated a buffer zone inside the Syrian border to protect civilians fleeing bombardment.

There is mounting speculation that Jordan would dispatch highly skilled special forces to secure such a zone when Al Assad’s regime falls to prevent chaos on its border.

In the past six weeks, more than 20 Syrian rockets have fallen on Jordanian villages near the border. At least two people were wounded, including a four-year-old Jordanian girl.

The two Western diplomats said the Britons, about a half-dozen officers specialised in intelligence gathering and special operations techniques, visited Jordan a few times over the past three months. The diplomats insisted on anonymity, saying that public comment may hamper their information gathering on Syria. The Jordanian army already has an extensive presence on the border and has been assisting waves of Syrian refugees, who are straining the country’s meagre resources, mainly health care, water and utilities.

Jordan hosts some 200,000 Syrian refugees, more than any other neighbouring country. Some come under constant firing from their army as they cross into the kingdom. Jordanian border guards have been wounded and a six-year-old Syrian boy was killed in July.

Jordanian men also are moving the other way across the border, joining what intelligence officials have estimated to be about 2,000 foreigners fighting alongside Syrian rebels trying to topple Al Assad.