King: ‘No refugees in Jordan, no refugees in Egypt; that is a red line’

• King warns whole region ‘at the brink of falling into the abyss’
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• King stresses need to ensure provision of humanitarian aid
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• The way forward demands political and not only security solutions

AMMAN — His Majesty King Abdullah on Tuesday warned that Jordan and Egypt cannot receive refugees due to the war on Gaza, describing it as a red line.

“I think I can quite strongly speak on behalf of, not only Jordan as a nation, but of our friends in Egypt — that is a red line,” King Abdullah said during remarks to the press after holding talks with German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, warning against attempts to create new facts on the ground to push a new wave of refugees on the region, according to a Royal Court statement.

“No, refugees in Jordan, no refugees in Egypt,” His Majesty said, noting that this is an issue of a humanitarian dimension that has to be dealt inside the West Bank and “not to try and push the Palestinian challenges and their future onto other people's shoulders”.

Responding to a question on what is required from the international community to end the cycles of violence, the King said there is a growing understanding within the international community that it is imperative to work towards ending the escalation as quickly as possible to be able to protect innocent civilians on all sides of the conflict.

“We will have to see what happens in the next week or so,” His Majesty added, noting that all based on discussions with leaders around the world, “everybody understands the seriousness of the situation of how we need to work together to de-escalate and stop the violence”.

The King also pointed to the upcoming visit of Chancellor Scholz to Israel and US President Joe Biden’s planned visit to Jordan as part of these ongoing international efforts.

Equally as important is to think of what happens afterwards, His Majesty said, adding, “Enough is enough; we cannot continue the cycle of violence every single year. Unless there is a political horizon that brings Israelis and Palestinians together, that allows Israelis and Arabs to come together, this will continue to be a cycle of violence that none of us can afford.”

“The threat of this war expanding is real. The cost this will bring on all of us is too much to bear. All our efforts are needed to make sure we don’t get there,” the King warned, stressing the need for all to work together to end the extremely tragic and dangerous situation unfolding in Gaza.

“Thousands of innocent civilians have been lost. Palestinian lives, Israeli lives. These are sons, daughters, mothers, fathers, husbands and wives,” His Majesty said.

His Majesty warned that “many more lives are at risk; hundreds of thousands have no access to food, water, electricity, and other basic services”, stressing that “this is unacceptable on all levels, legal and human”.

This year is already the bloodiest year for Palestinians and Israelis in recent memory, the King said, warning that, “it will get much worse, unless we stop this war, and the human catastrophe it is creating. And stop it we must”.

“We must all stand against all forms of violence, and with its victims, no matter their identity, nationality, or religion,” His Majesty reaffirmed.

“The whole region is at the brink of falling into the abyss that this new cycle of death and destruction is pushing us towards,” the King warned, stressing the need to ensure the provision of humanitarian aid.

“We must protect civilians. International humanitarian law, and our shared human values — indeed our common humanity — are clear on the obligation to protect civilians, and in condemning targeting the innocent,” His Majesty added.

“We condemn the killing of civilians on both sides. The whole world must do so. Our moral compass has to encompass all to be moral!” the King said.

The way forward demands political, and not only security solutions, His Majesty reaffirmed, stressing that restoring a meaningful political process that can lead to peace on the basis of the two-state solution “is the only path to a secure and safe future for the Palestinians, the Israelis, and equally as important for all of us in the region”.

“The challenge is enormous. But our will to realise it must be unwavering, for the sake of all our peoples, who have suffered enough war, enough pain and loss, for the sake of the innocent victims who fell, and continue to fall, since this cycle of violence erupted over 10 days ago,” the King said.

Turning to bilateral issues, His Majesty said that over the past 70 years of diplomatic relations, Jordan and Germany have built an unshakable foundation of exemplary cooperation, thanking Germany for supporting the Kingdom’s development efforts.

The King said discussions with Chancellor Scholz that were held prior to the press conference covered opportunities for advancing cooperation in energy, water, trade, vocational training and industry.

The two countries are also planning to bolster cooperation in human capital, with the planned launch of a Jordan-German Centre for Labour Mobility in Jordan to better equip Jordanians seeking job opportunities.

His Majesty also thanked Germany for the support it continues to provide to refugees and host communities, adding that it “remains a leader in offering and galvanising support, out of a deep awareness that standing by refugees and their host communities is a global moral imperative and a shared responsibility”.

Speaking at the press conference, Chancellor Scholz expressed concern over the humanitarian conditions and developments in the region, stressing his countries commitment to providing aid to mitigate the suffering of civilians.

The chancellor expressed Germany’s support for opening a humanitarian corridor into the Gaza Strip, in light of civilians’ needs for urgent humanitarian aid, as well as water, food and medicine.

He stressed that the two countries agree on preventing the expansion of the conflict into the region.

The chancellor thanked His Majesty for his efforts towards de-escalation and mediation over the past years, commending the King’s role in Jerusalem and safeguarding the status quo at holy sites.

Chancellor Scholz commended Jordan’s in receiving hundreds of thousands of refugees, stressing Germany’s commitment to providing more support for Jordan as it continues to host refugees.

He stressed the strong partnership between Jordan and Germany, which mark 70 years of diplomatic ties, expressing his country’s keenness to cooperate with Jordan on modernisation and in countering the impact of climate change.

The chancellor commended cooperation on water and climate change projects, expressing support for Jordan’s education sector and benefit from its human capital.

And within efforts to expand the partnership with Germany, Jordan and Germany signed a declaration of intent on cooperation to facilitate labour mobility between the two countries.

Under the declaration, a centre for labour mobility will be established, and the two countries will bolster cooperation in vocational training.

A number of memoranda of understanding and agreements were also signed on the provision of German 209 million euros in support in the form of grants and concessional loans to fund education, employment, training and water projects, including support for the national conveyor project and credit guarantees for private sector employment, in line with the Economic Modernisation Vision.

King returned to Jordan after a European tour to rally an international position to stop the war on Gaza.