Jordan stops mourning of gunman

Authorities order family of Mercaz Harav killer to dismantle mourning tent, remove Hamas flags.

By KHALED ABU TOAMEH
abdullah says fuck 224.8 (photo credit: AP)
abdullah says fuck 224.8
(photo credit: AP)
The Jordanian security forces have prevented relatives of Ala Abu Dhaim, the man who killed eight students and wounded nine at the Mercaz Harav Yeshiva in Jerusalem on Thursday, from publicly mourning him. The relatives, who live near Amman, erected a large tent to receive mourners on Friday, but were ordered by Jordanian security officers to dismantle it immediately. The officers handed the relatives an order signed by the governor of Amman banning them from erecting the tent or publicly mourning Abu Dhaim. They were also instructed to remove Hamas and Hizbullah flags that were hanging on rooftops and electricity poles. Muhammad Abu Dhaim, the terrorist's uncle, said he decided to open a mourning tent as soon as he heard that his nephew had been killed in the attack. "We were hoping that people would come to congratulate us on the martyrdom of my nephew," he said. "This is a heroic operation that must be celebrated by everyone here." The uncle said that after he dismantled the tent he decided to receive mourners in the yard of his home in the Sweileh suburb of Amman, but was once again threatened by the Jordanian authorities. "Jordanian security agents and policemen cordoned off the area and prevented people from coming to my house," he complained. "The Jordanian authorities' decision is unjustified and doesn't make sense. My nephew carried out an heroic operation against an extremist Zionist college that calls for killing Palestinians." Another family member living in Jordan said it was ironic that the Jordanians had banned the public mourning while Israel was allowing Abu Dhaim's family in Jerusalem to receive mourners and to hoist Hizbullah and Hamas flags. "We saw on TV that the family in Jerusalem was holding a public event," he said. "We didn't see the Israeli police prevent people from arriving at the family house there." A source in the Jordanian Interior Ministry said the public mourning in Amman was banned for "security considerations." The source said Jordan would not permit any group or individual to harm its national security by holding events that publicly supported violence against civilians. The source pointed out that in the past Jordanian authorities prevented the family of slain arch-terrorist Abu Musab Zarqawi from holding a similar event in the town of Zarqa. Jordan was one of the few Arab countries to condemn the shooting spree at the Mercaz Harav Yeshiva in Jerusalem. Earlier this month, Kuwaiti authorities banned Palestinians and Lebanese from publicly mourning slain Hizbullah military commander Imad Mughniyeh. The Kuwaitis even deported some Palestinians and Lebanese who hailed Mughniyeh as a "martyr" and called to avenge his death.