Jordan

From Gothpoodle

• Population: 15 million
• Aspects: Stable, Third Wave

Jordan has transformed itself into the epitome of the “liberal” Arab state. The current king is a constitutional monarch, presiding over a healthy parliamentary democracy. Local society is loyal to Islam, but Jordanian religious scholars are very adept at reconciling the spirit of religious law with the conditions of the modern world. The kingdom is a staunch supporter of the Islamic Caliphate.

Jordan has also become the effective Palestinian homeland. At present the kingdom’s population is about 40% of Palestinian descent, and the royal house itself has a significant amount of Palestinian blood. Tensions between the Palestinian exiles and the native Jordanian population, once near the point of civil war, have been much reduced by decades of royal diplomacy. Jordan’s willingness to accommodate Palestinian exiles, not as refugees but as full partners in the kingdom, did much to aid the final resolution of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.