Jordanian court to announce verdict on alleged royal plot

AMMAN, Jordan (AP) – A Jordanian state security court is expected to announce its verdict on Monday in the trial of two former officials accused of plotting with King Abdullah II’s half-brother to stir up unrest in the allied kingdom of the West.

Bassem Awadallah, a US citizen and former senior adviser to the king, and Sharif Hassan bin Zaid, a member of the royal family, were arrested in April for an alleged conspiracy against the kingdom involving Prince Hamzah, the king’s half-brother and former Crown Prince .

The royal family say they have resolved the dispute with Hamzah, whose exact status is unknown but has never been formally charged. Awadallah’s US lawyer says he was tortured in Jordanian detention and fears for his life.

The three have been accused of instigating unrest against the monarch while seeking foreign aid. Hamzah has denied the allegations in video statements released in April after he was placed under house arrest, saying he was silenced for speaking out against the corruption and poor governance of the ruling system.

The two defendants pleaded not guilty to the counts of sedition and incitement, carrying long prison terms.

Abdullah is due in Washington on July 19, when he will be the first Arab leader to meet with President Joe Biden at the White House. Jordan is a close ally of the United States in the Middle East and is seen as a key partner in ultimately relaunching the Israeli-Palestinian peace process.

Michael Sullivan, a former federal prosecutor hired by the United States-based Awadallah family, told The Associated Press that the closed-door trial, which consisted of only six hearings, “was completely unfair.”

Awadallah says he was beaten, subjected to electric shocks and threatened with future ill-treatment “if he didn’t confess,” Sullivan said.

The court rejected requests by Jordanian defense lawyers to call witnesses, and prosecutors only shared the alleged transcripts, but not the audio, of the surveillance of the alleged conspirators.

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The state security court prosecutor’s office denied that the trial was unfair, saying Awadallah was given due process under Jordanian law and was not mistreated in any way. He said Awadallah did not raise the torture allegations until the verdict was near.

Sullivan, a former US attorney for Massachusetts and former acting director of the Federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, said based on how the trial went, a verdict of guilt seemed to go without saying. He said any conviction would be appealed.

Awadallah, who also holds Jordanian and Saudi nationality, was head of the royal court and government minister in Jordan. He has extensive business interests in the Gulf and has advised the powerful Crown Prince of Saudi Arabia, Mohammed bin Salman, on attracting foreign investment. The Awadallah family have urged the Biden administration to seek his release.