WORLD : Jordanians Riot Over Price Hikes
ts over price increases spread to several towns in southern Jordan today, leaving at least one person dead and nearly a score injured, and Crown Prince Hassan said he feared that the protests would intensify.
Residents in Ma’an, 135 miles south of Amman, rioted for the second straight day and one man, an off-duty soldier, was shot and killed in battles between demonstrators and police, relatives reported.
The violence appeared to be the worst in Jordan since the army crushed Palestinian guerrillas in 1970-71 and drove them from the country. Jordan has experienced little turmoil for 15 years, in large measure because of a rapid increase in living standards and education financed by aid from Arab oil states. That aid has declined recently and the country has a $6-billion debt.
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