Israel-Jordan Treaty of Peace: Encyclopedia II - Israel-Jordan Treaty of Peace - The signing of the agreement

Israel-Jordan Treaty of Peace - The signing of the agreement

In July 1994 the Prime Minister of Jordan Abdelsalam al-Majali declared an "end to the age of wars" and Shimon Peres declared that "the moment of peace has arrived". Rabin and King Hussein held a public meeting with Clinton at the White House.

On October 26, 1994 Jordan and Israel then signed the historic peace treaty in a ceremony held in the Arava valley of Israel, north of Eilat and near the Jordanian border. Prime Minister Rabin and Prime Minister Abdelsalam al-Majali signed the treaty and the President of Israel Ezer Weizman shook hands with King Hussein. It was witnessed by President Bill Clinton, accompanied by US Secretary of State Warren Christopher. Thousands of colorful balloons released into the sky ended the event.

The Israeli public fully supported the agreement and was very excited about such an historic moment. Egypt welcomed the agreement and Syria ignored it. However, the Lebanese terrorist group Hizbullah resisted the treaty and 20 minutes prior to the signature ceremony shelled the northern Galilee settlements with mortar shells and rockets. The Israeli residents, who were forced to evacuate into shelters, took with them radio transistors and mobile TVs in order not to miss the historical moment of signing a second peace treaty with an Arab state.

Following the agreements, Israel and Jordan opened their borders as borders of peace. Several border-crossings were erected across the border, allowing tourists, merchants and workers to travel between the two states. Israeli tourists started to visit Jordan, many of them traveled especially to see the sela ha'adom ("Red Rock") of Petra - a stone-carved Nabatean city which fascinated Israelis during the 50's and the 60's, often luring adventurers to visit it secretly.

Adapted from the Wikipedia article "The signing of the agreement", under the G.N U Free Docmentation License. Please also see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki