Jordan to supply illegal Israel settlements with energy, under new deal

Israel, Jordan and the UAE are expected to sign a deal today in Dubai under which a solar plant in the Jordanian desert will generate power for Israel, in exchange for a desalination plant in Israel that will provide Jordan with water, news agencies said.

The Israeli news website Walla reported officials saying that the agreement is the biggest regional cooperation project ever reached between Israel and its neighbours.

According to the news site, the agreement, which would also be signed in the presence of a senior American official, comes after months of secret negotiations between the three countries.

Palestinian expert Dr Saleh Al Naami said the deal will turn the Jordanian desert into a support base for illegal settlements and see Israeli waste directed into Jordan.

“Jordan has the desert in the south and this will be used for a massive solar plant to generate electricity to be exported to the Israeli settlements in the Negev and the West Bank,” Al-Naami said.

He added: “Part of the Israeli industrial infrastructure, which has polluting emissions that harm the densely populated areas in Israel will be relocated to the Jordanian desert under the pretext of hiring Jordanian workers.”

Al-Naami stressed: “This plan proves that the Jordanian regime is increasingly serving Israeli interests.”

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