Amman, Jordan – Eleven top Jordanian officials, including the kingdom’s national security adviser, resigned Tuesday in the wake of last week’s triple hotel bombings, state-run TV announced.
Jordan also introduced strict security measures aimed at foreigners and said it was drafting the country’s first anti-terrorism legislation to prevent more such attacks.
King Abdullah II appointed Marouf al-Bakhit, Amman’s ambassador to Israel, to replace outgoing security chief Saad Kheir, a former head of Jordan’s intelligence department.
No details were given for the resignation of Kheir and 10 others, including prominent religious advisers to Abdullah, but a limited shake-up had been expected.
The moves came as more details emerged about the 35-year- old Iraqi woman who failed in her bid to blow herself up in an Amman hotel, with friends saying she had three brothers killed by U.S. forces.
The U.S. Embassy also said four Americans were among those killed in the attacks, raising the U.S. toll from three.
In an attempt to keep foreign militants from operating covertly in Jordan, Interior Minister Awni Yirfas announced new regulations demanding that all Jordanians notify authorities within 48 hours of any foreigners renting an apartment or house.
“Violators of this regulation will face legal ramifications,” Yirfas said without elaborating.
Authorities will demand that Jordanians provide the names, nationalities and passport details of any foreigner renting a property.
Jordan also has begun drafting tough new anti-terrorism laws that are likely to be ready for debate in parliament early next year, a top Interior Ministry official said.
The laws propose allowing any suspect to be held for questioning indefinitely and imposing penalties on “those who would expose the lives and properties of citizens to danger inside and outside the country,” the official said, speaking on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to speak to the media.
Anyone condoning or justifying terrorist actions or supporting them financially will face penalties under the proposed laws, he added.
