Aides to the former Jordanian heir Prince Hamzah sought pledges of allegiance on his behalf from tribal leaders and former military officers in the weeks before he was detained, conversations caught on phone intercepts and listening devices suggest Guardian reported.
The recordings are key pieces of evidence in the Jordanian government’s case against two men accused of acting as proxies for Hamzah in a failed attempt to oust his half-brother, King Abdullah, as monarch. Both men – Bassem Awadallah, a former envoy to Saudi Arabia, and Sharif Hassan bin Zaid, a cousin of the king – are expected to stand trial in Amman starting on Monday.
The calls and intercepts, which have been heard by the Guardian, took place over three weeks in March, a period in which officials say Hamzah tried to rally support from figures who could elevate what officials describe as a seditious plot into a serious challenge to Abdullah’s reign.
The calls and intercepts, which have been heard by the Guardian, took place over three weeks in March, a period in which officials say Hamzah tried to rally support from figures who could elevate what officials describe as a seditious plot into a serious challenge to Abdullah’s reign.
The recordings include the Arabic term mubayaa, which implies swearing an oath to a caliph or monarch. The use of such a phrase alarmed intelligence officials who had begun surveilling Hamzah and his aides, setting in motion a real-life Game of Thrones, which placed two of Jordan’s most senior royals at odds and implicated its two closest allies.
The Guardian on Wednesday revealed the US had warned of the alleged plot in a call to Jordan’s spy agency in March. At the same time, a report was handed to Abdullah, who had been frozen out of plans by Donald Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner to reshape the Middle East during the former US president’s tumultuous four years.
The American warning came after Bin Zaid allegedly approached a US diplomat soliciting support for the former crown prince’s ascent to the throne.
