DUBAI – A schism in Jordan’s ruling royal family erupted openly on Saturday, with the reigning monarch’s younger brother saying he had effectively been placed under house arrest and state media reporting that senior officials were detained as part of security investigations.
In a video broadcast by the BBC, Prince Hamzah bin Hussein lamented efforts to silence him and criticized the government of his brother, King Abdullah, an important US ally, saying: “This country has become blocked by corruption, by nepotism and mismanagement. “
The prince – who was removed from the position of crown prince, a position that placed him close in line to the throne, by King Abdullah in 2004 – said that several of his friends were arrested and told not to leave the house. He said his security posting was removed and his internet and phone lines cut.
More than 20 people have been arrested so far, most of them close allies of the prince, according to two Arab envoys from Jordan and another person familiar with the matter. Jordan’s state news agency Petra quoted the country’s military chief of staff as saying that the detainees were being held as part of “comprehensive joint investigations by security forces”
Jordanian officials told diplomats that they were investigating a plot backed by foreigners to destabilize the country, these people said. In his video, Prince Hamzah said there was no such conspiracy.