King Hussein to Netanyahu: "You destroyed everything"

“You are destroying everything built so far with joint forces,” King Hussein of Jordan was quoted as saying to Israeli Prime Minister Benyamin Nethanyahu in their latest meeting near London two days ago.

Netanyahu, meanwhile, is convinced that the relations between Jordan and Israel and the personal relations between himself and King Hussein have been completely restored following their nightly meeting in London two days ago. But senior Jordanian officials told the Hebrew daily Yediot Ahronot that King Hussein did not propose to Netanyahu to open a new leaf in their relations following the failed assassination attempt on Hamas figure Khaled Mishal in Amman.

According to the same Jordanian sources that spoke to the paper, following King Hussein’s meeting with US President Bill Clinton last week, the latter authorized King Hussein to transmit a harsh message to Netanyahu and even asked him to initiate the meeting. The message from Clinton included a demand that Israel take “positive” action in favor of the Palestinians by December 23. If the “positive” action takes place, there will be a meeting between Clinton and Netanyahu.

Israeli sources close to Netanyahu said he “candidly” explained to King Hussein the motives which led him to order the assassination of Mishal.

A substantial part of the talk dealt with the Iraqi crisis. Netanyahu agreed that following the meeting, a statement would be issued saying that both he and the king are interested in a diplomatic solution to the crisis, and not a military one. The king demanded from Netanyahu that under all circumstances, Israeli airforce planes would not fly over Jordan if Israel attacks Iraqi targets. Netanyahu promised King Hussein that in the future, Israel would respect Jordanian sovereignty and that it sees relations as being of “strategic importance.”