Jordanian refugee: “I would rather sit in an Israeli prison than live under the king”
Jordanian Palestinian political and human rights activist Mohammed Btaibet speaks out against the BDS Movement and explains why Jordan but not Israel is an apartheid state: “Jordan would be better off under Israeli rule.” Jerusalem Online
Mohammed Btaibet Photo Credit: Facebook
Jordanian Palestinian political and human rights activist Mohammed Btaibet is a member of Jordan’s secular democratic opposition group the Jordanian Opposition Coalition who was blamed for igniting the largest revolution in Jordan’s history in November 2012, which was crushed by the Hashemite monarchy within three weeks. He was forced to flee to Germany earlier this week. He had very unusual things to say about the present political situation in Jordan as well as the relationship between Jordanians, Palestinians and Israelis.
To BDS activists that claim that Israel is an apartheid state, Btaibet has the following to state: “Look at the Israeli Arabs and how they live in luxury. That should answer the question of whether Israel is an apartheid state or not. All of this Israel is an apartheid state thing is promoted by the king’s regime in Jordan to separate and segregate Jordanians in the name of hating Israel. I could only wish that I was an Arab in Israel with an Israeli passport.”
To Europeans who support boycotting Israel, Btaibet asked them to compare how the average Palestinian lives in Jordan to the Palestinians living under Israeli control: “That should answer who is an apartheid regime and who is a corrupt state. Have you ever heard of an Israeli that ran to Europe and applied for political asylum?” He claimed that all Jordanians would be better off living under Israeli rule than the Hashemite dynasty: “Even Jordan would be better off under Israeli rule. All the Palestinians who work in Israel wish that they had Israeli citizenship and this is what the Palestinians themselves say.”
When asked why he fled Jordan, Btaibet proclaimed that he had to flee Jordan because his life was threatened due to his opposition to the Hashemite dynasty. The regime evidently threatened to murder him several times: “I have been threatened countless times in Europe and even over facebook. You need to understand that Jordan is not stable and the king is out of control. The king even missed the Eid holiday in Jordan. This has never happened. Also, the Pentagon is visiting Jordan soon and they are not even meeting with the king. They essentially know that he is no longer relevant.”
Btaibet proclaimed that if Germany rejects his political asylum, he would only agree to leave the country if they “send me to an Israeli jail. At least in an Israeli jail, I won’t be tortured and I will get better medical care than in the apartheid Hashemite regime.”