Caught between Israel and Iran, Jordan clings desperately to stability

After Iran’s unprecedented missile and drone attack on Israel on April 13, Jordan finds itself caught between the two enemies. Friday morning's suspected Israeli strikes in central Iran have intensified fear that the country could be dragged into an escalation against its will. Having been historically neutral in the two countries’ decades-old struggle, the Hashemite kingdom is now seeing its delicate balancing act threatened.

It’s a balancing act years in the making. Jordan, long obsessed with maintaining stability with Israel and Iran, has now been caught up in the war that could be unfolding on its doorstep. On the night of April 13, the Hashemite kingdom took part in the interception of “flying objects” that had entered its airspace in a historic drone and missile attack launched by Iran against the Jewish state. It was enough to leave the small country shaken.

Since the morning after the attack, the Jordanian government has insisted time and again that its actions had been a simple matter of self-defence, saying that the drones and missiles “that entered our airspace last night were dealt with and confronted preventively without endangering the safety of our citizens and residential and populated areas”.

"That's a major concern for Jordan," he said.

Read more on FRANCE 24 English

Read also:
What we know so far about the explosions reported in central Iran
How Israel could respond to Iran’s drone and missile assault
Iran’s reprisal against Israel: A failed attack or a veiled warning?