Evening star., 1957-04-28
The President Speaks

In Augusta. Georgia, President
Eisenhower interrupted his golf
vacation to confer by telephone
with Secretary of State Dulles. His
temporary Office then released a
statement that the United States
regarded the independence and.
integrity of Jordan as vital" Thus.
by employing the identical termi-
nology set forth in the Eisenhower
Doctrine approved by Congress
short weeks ago, the President re-
minded the world that a basis
existed. in the American view, for
intervention in Jordan.
Following up. the State Depart
ment in Washington issued a
formal statement labelling Inter.
national communism" as the cause
Of the, crisis in the Middle East
kingdom.
But the department, perhaps
hoping to preserve as much calm
as the crisis permitted, insisted
that the sudden move of the 9Th
Fleet was only a return to its
customary station i'm line with
conditions as they have been for
the last six months"
In embattled little Jordan.
events were moving swiftly toward
a showdown. On the outcome in
Jordan rested the future probable
complexion of the Arab world, and
to a great extent the future bal
ance OF power between the Com
munist bloc and the free world.
A week ago, young King Hussein,
having dramatically rallied to his
support the core of the Jordanian
Arab Legion, was for the moment
holding a precarious control over
his seething countrymen. A cabi-
net headed by Premier Hussein
Fahkri Khalidi, a staunch pro-
Westerner. was urging Jordan's
neighboring Arab nations to prac-
tice restraint and caution.
The Khalidi urgings fell on deaf
ears. ReStlessneSs, much of it OBJ
viously inspired and all Of it openly
encouraged by Cairo Radio, broke
out Wednesday morning in a wave
Of street demonstrations and riot
ing. The mobs, harangued by
speakers hailing Egypt's President
Canal Abdel Nasser's pan-Arabism
and attacking Israel as the root OF
all Arab woes and the. United
States as the would d-be successor
to British imperialism" we're kept
under relative control by police
welding riot sticks.
But the peril to the tottering
kingdom, where since the Palestine
war Of l948-49 two-thirds of the
population has been Palestinian,
bitter over the loss of their homes
and lands to Israel, grew hourly.
WEDNESDAY
After the worst Of the street riot
ing had been curbed in Amman and
In the Jordanian sector of Jerusa-
lem. and controlled in Remullah.
Neblus and Ibid, King Hussein
called a press conference to an
nounce that false propaganda"
emanating from international COM
munism and its followers" had
brought about the crisis. The YOUTH
ful monarch, promising a fight to
the finish against efforts to de-
stroy this country" said he had
the support Of the army and "my
people" Il think you will see with
In the next "a hours" he added.
that the crisis would be. brought
under control.
The Khalidi cabinet had remained
In Office despite the withdrawal Of
political support from most of the
political parties. But in the early
evening the cabinet resigned, and
King Hussein Immediately accepted
a new one, even more pro-Western
than the last. The new govern
ment, headed by 88-year- former
Premier Ibrahim Hashem, appeared
70 be carefully organized to put real
power in the hands OF the monarch
and the new Minister for Foreign
Affairs. Samir Ell Rifai.
THURSDAY
In a swift, determined move,