Rouhani, Jordan King Meet in Istanbul

Iranian and Jordanian heads of state reportedly held a brief meeting on the sidelines of a special summit of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) in Turkey. Tasnim news agency reported the meeting between President Hassan Rouhani and King Abdullah II in Istanbul on Friday. In September 2003, former president Mohammad Khatami met with King Abdullah II in Tehran during the OIC summit. King Abdullah II is a pro-western monarch but Amman's ties with the US and Saudi Arabia have recently been shaken over the issue of Palestine. Riyadh's coziness to Israel has worried Jordan which is in charge of the major Muslim shrine complex (the al-Aqsa Mosque) in occupied Palestine. When Iranian protesters attacked the Saudi Embassy in Tehran in January 2016, Jordan did not sever ties with Iran but recalled its ambassador instead. The relocation of the US Embassy to Beit-ul-Moqaddas (Jerusalem) has infuriated Jordan.