Less than two weeks after an attack on Hamoud Church in Jordan’s Karak governorate left nine people dead, the killing of a police officer in Amman, which authorities classified as a terrorist attack, has once again brought attention to the security challenges posed by extremism in the kingdom.
Jordanian House of Representatives Speaker Ibrahim Tarawneh announced that lawmakers were considering legislation to deal with terrorism and extremism. The House, he said, would fulfill its oversight and legislative responsibilities “in ways that strengthen the country’s security and stability.”
“There is a need for legislation granting authorities the power to monitor and supervise people convicted of terrorism-related offenses after their release, and to place them in rehabilitation programs while assessing their response to those programs,” Ayatollah Freihat, deputy speaker of the Jordanian House of Representatives, told MBN.
He also called on society, particularly families, to “keep track of their children’s inclinations and alert the authorities to protect them” from the threat of extremism.
Jordanian lawmaker Bakr Mohammed al-Haisa told MBN that a review of legislation should be accompanied by other measures to monitor and counter the spread of extremist ideology on social media, “as well as empowering security agencies to carry out their duties effectively and providing them with legal protection.”
Al-Haisa also stressed the need to monitor trends within places of worship and schools because of their impact on society.
“Such tendencies exist in some schools, requiring school administrations to follow up and step up oversight,” he said.
On Nov. 5, a police officer was stabbed to death while on duty in the capital, Amman. The Public Security Directorate said preliminary investigations indicated that the attacker had planned the assault as a terrorist act.
Two weeks earlier, nine people were killed and 40 others injured in what authorities have described as a terrorist attack on a church in the town of Hamoud, in Karak governorate
Following that attack, Jordanian Interior Minister Mazen al-Faraya said that confronting takfiri ideology required action on multiple fronts, “beginning with education, school curricula, and cultural and social activities, and extending to mosques, universities and social media.”
Takfirism is an extremist interpretation of Islam that involves declaring other Muslims to be unbelievers in order to justify violence against them.
Al-Faraya said that the government would show no tolerance toward anyone, “whether a teacher or an imam, who spreads hatred against others or promotes extremist ideas.”
But Hassan Abu Hanieh, a researcher specializing in Islamist movements, believes that extremism in Jordan has nothing to do with school curricula.
“Curricula have been revised several times, so the issue must be examined from political, economic and social perspectives,” he said.
Abu Hanieh told MBN that several obstacles undermine the authorities’ efforts to combat extremism, “including the absence of a clear strategy and institutional framework, as well as a lack of financial resources.”
He noted that many people who have carried out acts of violence had previously been held in prison on extremism-related charges, “pointing to the absence of rehabilitation and reintegration programs.”
Jordanian lawmaker Mustafa al-Khasawneh told MBN that legislation governing correctional and rehabilitation centers should also be reviewed. He called for denying those convicted of terrorism offenses the benefits of mitigating circumstances or sentence reductions for good behavior, while stressing the importance of placing them in rehabilitation and reintegration programs.
In the aftermath of the Karak attack, King Abdullah II chaired a meeting of the National Security Council as part of royal directives to review policies aimed at combating extremist ideology and “drying up its sources.”
