Even the most allergic Jordanians should have difficulty escaping the royal wedding of the year in the Middle East: for the past few days, all the attention of the media in the Hashemite kingdom has been turned to the nuptials of Crown Prince Hussein with a young Saudi architect , Rajwa Al-Saif, scheduled for Thursday 1er June. This day, during which the procession of the newlyweds will cross part of Amman, has been declared a public holiday.
Symbolic in more ways than one, this union is celebrated with pomp by the Crown. By way of popular celebrations, a free concert was organized Monday in a stadium in the capital: flag or portrait of the young couple in hand, thousands of Jordanians vibrated to the tunes sung by Arab pop stars, such as the Lebanese Ragheb Alama, mixing sweet melodies and royal praise. For the wedding guests – members of the Jordanian elite, who will be joined by crowned heads and other distinguished guests such as the American first lady Jill Biden – various receptions will be given by King Abdullah II and his wife, Rania, from Wednesday evening.
This marriage is supposed to mark a moment of national reunion, after a period of economic slump, family dissension and uncertainty about the role of the Hashemite kingdom on a regional scene in recomposition. A moment of festive parenthesis, in a country which fears being increasingly marginalized, as regards its function as a diplomatic pivot or its status as guardian of the Holy Places of Jerusalem. The regional group to which Jordan belongs, the Levant, once the locomotive of the Near East, is now only a shadow of itself; the wealthy Gulf countries have gained the upper hand.
On the inner stage, “Hamza Affair” has left its mark: the popular prince, former heir to the throne and half-brother of the king, remains under house arrest, two years after being accused of plotting against Abdallah with the complicity of two personalities close to Saudi Arabia. A version that some Jordanians never believed. The episode, raising fears for stability, was accompanied by a growing susceptibility of the palace to criticism.
The nuptials also cement the enthronement of 28-year-old Prince Hussein as future king. His portrait has already appeared for years in official buildings alongside those of his father and his late grandfather, a charismatic man whose first name he bears. Hussein was named crown prince in 2009, after his father, Abdallah, stripped the title from Hamza.
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