After Months-long Diplomatic Crisis, Jordan Reportedly Set To Approve New Israeli Ambassador

Jordan is expected in the near future to approve the appointment of Amir Weissbrod as Israel’s new Ambassador to the kingdom. The news comes after the two countries forged an agreement in January to end a months-long diplomatic standoff over a fatal confrontation at the Israeli Embassy in Amman, in which security guard Ziv Moyal killed two Jordanians. The episode occurred on July 23, 2017, when teenager Mohammed Al-Jawawdeh stabbed Moyal, who opened fire in response, killing the attacker and the building’s owner in the crossfire. The incident sparked a major crisis which intensified when Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu feted Moyal upon his return to Israel—a move described at the time by Jordanian King Abdullah II as “unacceptable and provocative.” The confrontation occurred amid already heightened tensions surrounding the Temple Mount—known to Muslims as the Haram al-Sharif, atop which sits the Al-Aqsa mosque—caused by Israel’s introduction at the holy site of additional security measures, including the installation of metal detectors, in the wake of a deadly terror attack. The initiative was eventually reversed, however, amid widespread protests throughout the Arab-Islamic world. To mend ties with Jordan, the Israeli government “expressed regret” for the loss of life at the embassy; agreed to pay compensation to the families of the victims; and acceded to a Jordanian demand to replace then-ambassador Einat Schlein. Weissbrod, who currently heads the Middle East Bureau at the Israeli Foreign Ministry’s Center for Political Research, previously served as first-secretary at the mission in Amman between 2001 and 2004.