Lower House's Legal Committee brainstorms Jordanian-Israeli deals with constitutional experts

AMMAN — The Lower House's Legal Committee on Sunday discussed the deals Jordan had signed with Israel with experts as per a mission it had embarked on before, making its recommendations to the government. 

Amid the Israeli war on Gaza, the Lower House has tasked the committee with examining all Jordanian-Israeli deals, including the 1994 Wadi Arab Peace Treaty. The panel has been asked to refer recommendations to the government on the deals for any necessary action.  

Head of the committee MP Ghazi Thneibat said that all "options are on the table" concerning the fate of the deals Jordan has signed with Israel, adding that safeguarding Jordan's top interests will be the basis of any decision to be made, the Jordan News Agency, Petra, reported. 

He also said that the committee met on Sunday with experts in constitutional and international law as part of a series of similar meetings it is scheduled to hold with other pundits before wrapping up its mission.

The MP said that the committee also discussed with the experts a draft complaint the House is preparing to be submitted to the International Criminal Court against Israeli leaders for their "war crimes."  

"The complaint is against the aggression on Gaza and the settlers in the West Bank who attacks Palestinians," Thneibat said.

In November 2022, Jordan and Israel signed a memorandum of understanding to move ahead with a water-for-energy deal.

Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ayman Safadi has recently said that Jordan will not sign the deal with Israel in light of the ongoing war on the Gaza Strip. 

Under the agreement, Jordan was to build 600 megawatts of solar power capacity to export to Israel, which would in return provide Jordan with 200 million cubic metres of desalinated water.