My father spent more than forty years searching for a lasting peace between Israel and the Palestinians, and for a comprehensive peace in the region. But even though he struggled until his dying day, he did not see it come to pass. My great-grandfather, Abdullah I, was assassinated in Jerusalem, paying the ultimate price for his pursuit of peace in a climate of war. We all hope that this conflict does not claim more brave leaders and continue through future generations.
In 2009, I named my oldest son, Hussein, crown prince in accordance with the Constitution, which states that “the Royal Title shall pass from the holder of the Throne to his eldest son” but gives the king the right to select one of his brothers as heir apparent. This was a difficult decision. I would have preferred that he avoid the extra scrutiny that goes with the position, and be blessed with teen years as unpressured as mine were. But in the end I felt that it was best for the country, and for my son, to be clear about where I saw destiny taking the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan. Hussein is now sixteen. My most fervent hope is that when, in the fullness of time, he assumes his responsibilities, he will not be struggling with the same conflict that took his great-great-grandfather’s life.
Over a decade ago, in the last months of his life, my father raised himself from his sickbed to address Yasser Arafat and Benjamin Netanyahu at the signing of the Wye Accords. He understood how fragile the dream of peace could be and was under no illusions as to the difficulties that lay ahead. He said, “I think such a step as is concluded today will inevitably trigger those who want to destroy life, destroy hope, create fear in the hearts and minds of people, and trigger in them their worst instincts. They will be skeptical on the surface, but if they can, they will cause damage, wherever they are and wherever they belong.”
My father spoke at a time when trust between Israelis and Palestinians was high and many hoped the leaders on both sides would build on this foundation to achieve a lasting peace. The last decade of neglect has seen trust and hope fall to new lows and has strengthened those bent on destruction.
Every family, in East Jerusalem and in Tel Aviv, in Ramallah and in Jaffa, in the end, wants the same things: a peaceful and dignified life; the ability to fulfill their potential and to secure a better future for their children. Our better nature compels us to always look toward the light. I cannot believe that the people of Israel and Palestine want to continue to kill and be killed. We must all pray that their political leaders will give them the opportunity to live in peace and dignity.
Unless we see some positive breakthrough in the next year, I fear that we will miss our last chance for peace in a generation, and condemn our region to suffer another cycle of violence, war, and death. I fear that we are slipping into the darkness. But that does not have to be the future for our region. Our people want peace. It is our responsibility as leaders to make this much-eroded dream come true.
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
Not that long ago, I was speaking to some friends about how remarkable it was to me that more than ten years had passed since I had become king. We talked about the extraordinary series of events that Jordan, the Middle East, and the world had been through in that decade and my hopes that the next ten years would see greater safety, prosperity, and opportunity for all our citizens. Most of all, we talked about my conviction that the world is at a crossroads. In early 2009, it seemed to me that the stars could be uniquely aligned to give us a chance to solve the Palestinian-Israeli conflict and to achieve the regional peace that had eluded past generations. I said that I would continue to do everything I could to make that happen.
During that discussion, one of my friends suggested that this would be a good time for me to write a book about what I had seen and done, and what I dreamed about for the future.
I had never given much thought to writing a book. My army training leads me to prefer courses of action with timelier outcomes. And besides, I thought, I’m a young man who, God willing, has only just begun his time as King of Jordan. But someone pointed out that my father had published a book,
Uneasy Lies the Head
, in 1962, the year I was born, describing his first ten years as king. I have always found following my father’s example to be a wise course, so I began to give it serious thought.
The first step was to find a publisher who might be interested in bringing this story to a wider audience, and Andrew Wylie and Scott Moyers of Wylie & Company, one of America’s most respected literary agencies, helped me to navigate the complex waters of international publishing. With their help, I was introduced to Clare Ferraro and Joy de Menil of Viking Penguin. Clare immediately believed that I had a story to tell that would be of interest to the reading public and we began to work together on the process of producing a book. Joy was assigned as my editor, and throughout I have benefitted greatly from her razor-sharp intellect, broad knowledge of politics and history, and keen sense of how to present complex facts in a simple manner. She helped me pull together the threads of a varied life into a coherent narrative. Her assistant, Chris Russell, was also a tremendous help.
Relying on one’s memory alone would be a very bad way to produce a memoir. I have sought the help of countless people to refresh my recollections and sharpen my judgments. I have also drawn on many documents and records from our archives to provide context, color, and clarity where memories might fade. I have endeavored to make this book as accurate as possible. But I know that whenever you have more than one person in a room, particularly when trying to reconstruct complex and important discussions on topics like Middle East peace, you can count on multiple recollections of what transpired. All I can say is that this book is my best effort to share with you my memories, impressions, and views.
Countless people played important roles in helping bring this project to fruition. Space allows me to thank by name just a few of them—but I am deeply grateful to many others whose contributions have been significant and who will go unnamed.
First, I must single out several members of my staff at the Royal Court whose contributions were extraordinary. Ayman Safadi, my adviser, has been the overall project manager, whose tireless work, energy, attention to detail, and persistence in bringing the book to a higher level made this project possible. Without his involvement, the book would never have gone to print. Mohammad Abu Taleb, keeper of the Royal Privy Purse, has been tremendously energetic, optimistic, and enthusiastic as he shepherded this complex project smoothly to a conclusion. I could not have asked for a better person to help make sure that everyone involved met their deadlines and remained focused. Nadine Khamis, projects manager at the Royal Privy Purse, has been invaluable in sorting through the complex legal nuances of publishing a book in many different countries and languages. My private secretary, Shereen Shuwayhat, did a fantastic job transcribing many, many hours of conversations, which were the basis for the written material in the book. She also helped me track down resource documents and kept track of the many drafts of the various chapters as I worked on them to make sure that I was accurately conveying my thoughts.
The chief of royal protocol, Amer Al-Fayez, and his staff, particularly Seeta Talhouni Mirza, were essential in coordinating the scores of interviews with current and former Jordanian officials to ensure that the book thoroughly reflected the views of those who were most knowledgeable about the events I describe. Widad Maria Salah and Shaza Moghraby at the Media and Communication Directorate at the Royal Court did a tremendous job in researching and reviewing materials for the book. My thanks also go to Dr. Jafar Hassan, former director of the International Affairs Directorate at the Royal Court, and as of December 14, 2009, minister of planning and international cooperation, who helped in retrieving scores of critical documents from the royal archives. Also deserving appreciation is Haron Hassan, who has helped create a Web site for the book.
Many friends, family members, and current and former Jordanian officials shared their recollections to help flesh out my memories of events past. A partial list of them includes: HM Queen Rania, HRH Princess Muna, HRH Prince Feisal, HRH Prince Ali, HRH Prince Ghazi, HH Prince Zeid, Zaid Rifai, Field Marshal Abdul Hafez Kaabneh, Dr. Samir Mutawi, General Ahmed Sarhan, Dr. Marwan Muasher, Nasser Judeh, Samir Rifai, Karim Kawar, Dr. Bassem Awadallah, Brigadier Ali Jaradat, Lt. Col. Nathem Rawashdeh, Dr. Mutayyam al O’ran, Dr. Eric Widmer, and Robert Richer.
Special thanks go to Drosten Fisher for his invaluable help with the writing of what has become
Our Last Best Chance
. Drosten attended Oxford and Georgetown Universities. An Arabic speaker and a thoughtful student of the Middle East, Drosten kindly took a leave of absence from his work at a consulting firm to help me with the project. He has proven to be a terrific choice in helping me to assemble, shape, and present my thoughts on paper.
As in all things, I am enormously grateful to my extended family. Readers of this book will know that my six sisters, four brothers, and numerous aunts, uncles, and cousins have played a critical role in making me who I am and in helping me achieve whatever good I have accomplished in my life. My father, His Late Majesty King Hussein, and my mother, Her Royal Highness Princess Muna, gave me an opportunity to live an extraordinary life, to see what few have seen, and to do my best to serve the people of Jordan.
God has given me many blessings. But the greatest of all is to be husband to Rania, and father to our children Hussein, Iman, Salma, and Hashem. They are the lights of my life.
INDEX
Abbas, Mahmoud (Abu Mazen)
Abdullah II, meetings with
Annapolis conference (2007)
Israel-Palestine peace efforts
Netanyahu, meetings with
as PNA president
settlement conditions of
Abdel Ilah, Prince of Iraq
Abdel-Rahman, Sheikh
Abdullah bin Abdulaziz, Crown Prince of Saudi Arabia
Abdullah II, meeting with
Abdullah I ibn Al Hussein, King of Jordan
assassination of
and Great Arab Revolt
and Israel-Palestine conflict
kingdom, scope of
on T. E. Lawrence
Abdullah II ibn Al Hussein, King of Jordan
Amman Message
assassination threats to
Benedict XVI, outreach to
Crown Prince of.
See
Hussein bin Abdullah II, Crown Prince of Jordan
early life.
See
Abdullah II ibn Al Hussein, Prince of Jordan
economy, approach to
educational reforms
global outreach, success of
governmental reforms of
honor killings, campaign against
information network, building of
institutional improvements by
Iraq reconstruction plan of
during Iraq War
Iraq War, opposition to
Islamic extremists, best defense against
and Islamic extremists in Jordan
Israel-Palestine peace efforts
King’s Academy
leadership, grooming by King Hussein for
Middle East, tour as king
nuclear program
prime ministers of
prisoner amnesty by
Rania pronounced queen
on religion/politics mix
on September 11
on Shia-led Iraq
sworn as king
terrorist hunt by
U.S. Congress, address to (2007)
U.S. Jordan FTA
world leaders, relations with.
See names of individual leaders
World Trade Organization (WTO)
Abdullah II ibn Al Hussein, Prince of Jordan
birth of
in British army
children.
See
Hashem bin Abdullah II, Prince of Jordan; Hussein bin Abdullah II, Crown Prince of Jordan; Iman bint Abdullah II, Princess of Jordan; Salma bint Abdullah II, Princess of Jordan
as crown prince
as diplomatic liaison
education of
grandfather.
See
Talal bin Abdullah, King of Jordan
great-grandfather.
See
Abdullah I ibn Al Hussein, King of Jordan
great-great-grandfather.
See
Hussein bin Ali, Sharif of Mecca
Gulf War (1991)
on Iraq invasion of Kuwait (1990)
on Jewish migration to Palestine
in Jordanian army.
See
Jordanian army (Jordan Armed Forces)
lineage of
line of succession, removal from
military education, Sandhurst
motto of
during 1967 war
North Korea, visit to
parents.
See
Hussein bin Talal, King of Jordan; Muna Al Hussein, Princess of Jordan
pastimes of
prejudice, experience of
protection during childhood of
and Saddam Hussein family
siblings of
sports/athletics
successor to
sworn as king
wife.
See entries under
Rania Al Abdullah
Abir Muheisen
Abrams, Elliott
Abu Baker Al Seddiq
Abu Dhabi, Abdullah II,
tour as king
Abu Ghraib
Abu Hussein “Father of Hussein,”
Act of Union
Afghanistan
Islamic extremists in
Russian occupation
U.S. war in (2001)
Al Ahliyya Amman University
Ahmadinejad, Mahmoud
Airline hijackings
Aisha bint Al Hussein, Princess of Jordan
education of
in Jordan army