Jordanians protest 'water for energy' deal with Israel

Thousands of Jordanians rallied in protest against a deal signed with Israel that will reportedly see the two countries swap electricity for water, Anadolu News Agency reports.

The march began in front of the Husseini Mosque in the capital, Amman, and continued to the Al-Nakhil Square about a kilometre (0.6 miles) away, amid a heavy security presence, an Anadolu Agency correspondent reported from the scene.

The demonstrations were organised by political parties and trade unions in Jordan to reject the Hashemite Kingdom’s decision to negotiate with Tel Aviv on the feasibility of a joint energy and water project.

On Monday, Jordan announced the signing of a declaration of intent for exchanging water for energy with the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and Israel.

Jordan: anger at electricity-for-water deal with Israel

The three countries will start talks to explore the feasibility of a joint energy and water project, according to Jordan’s Ministry of Water and Irrigation.

The Ministry said in a statement that the declaration of intent meant “entering the process of feasibility studies during the next year 2022, through which Jordan could obtain 200 million cubic meters of water annually.”

Last month, Jordan signed an agreement with Israel to buy 50 million cubic meters of water from Tel Aviv — an additional amount to what was stipulated in the peace agreement signed between the two countries in 1994.

Jordan currently stands second in the list of the world’s water-poor countries, according to the global water index.