Police officer killed in Jordan as anger over fuel prices spreads
Al JazeeraNov 27, 2022
The Facts
The deputy police chief of Jordon's Maan province, Colonel Abdul Razzaq Dalabeh, was fatally shot in the head by an unidentified assailant on Thursday as he was reportedly trying to "calm down riots" after protests over high fuel prices turned violent in the southern town of Al Husseiniya.
King Abdullah II extended his condolences to Dalabeh's family as the government vowed to take "tough steps" and redeploy more anti-riot police to quell the unrest.
The Spin
Pro-establishment narrative
While the demonstrators' concerns are legitimate, violence isn't the answer, and these types of attacks must be quelled. Subsidizing fuel prices is no longer feasible due to the government's commitment to the International Monetary Fund, yet authorities have still promised to look into the protester's demands, which they should be left to do without having to deal with the ongoing riots.
Establishment-critical narrative
How else do you expect the poor to demand change? Worsening living standards, rising unemployment, and devastating poverty have brought this unrest. If the government fails to meet the protestors' just demands, Jordan's economic woes could spark a fresh social upheaval in the kingdom.
