The occupation is considering not renewing the water agreement with Jordan, as reported by the Israeli Broadcasting Corporation on Thursday. Hebrew sources indicated that Jordanian statements described as "anti-Israel" have prompted the Israeli government to contemplate non-renewal. Jordan signed an agreement with Israel in 2021 to purchase an additional 50 million cubic meters of water, in addition to what was stipulated in the peace treaty signed between the two countries in 1994.
Jordan faces a water deficit of approximately 400 million cubic meters annually in the summer, while its estimated need is 900 million cubic meters, according to the Ministry of Water and Irrigation. In April 2020, Jordan purchased 8 million cubic meters of water from the Netanyahu government, which had repeatedly threatened to "thirst Jordan" in 2017 in response to Jordan's position on the "deal of the century."
Last Tuesday, the Israeli newspaper "Yedioth Ahronoth" pointed to the deterioration of relations between Israel and Jordan, considering that the Hashemite Kingdom is "no longer our little sister," as per the newspaper's expression. The Hebrew newspaper revealed the halt of joint meetings that a group of top officials from the security agencies in both countries used to hold several times each year, at a hotel in the Israeli city of Netanya and at the Dead Sea on the Jordanian side. However, these meetings stopped following the "Operation Flood of Al-Aqsa" on October 7 last year.
According to the newspaper, these meetings, ongoing for about ten years, provide results to the authorities in Amman and Tel Aviv and are "relied upon by both countries" in times of crisis. The newspaper clarified that after October 7, "relations between the two countries deteriorated rapidly, marking the hardest and most painful fall for Israel with a state from the Arab world." It pointed out that the Israeli Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, maintains silence regarding the negative statements and proposals of right-wing ministers.
Doubts, according to Ahronoth, arise that King Abdullah II of Jordan suspects Netanyahu intends to grant Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman guardianship over Al-Aqsa Mosque, adding the third holy site to the list of places under Saudi sovereignty after Mecca and Medina.
