Jordan's king appoints new PM after general election

AMMAN

Jordan's King Abdullah II nominated his chief of staff to be the new prime minister on Sept. 15, the royal palace said, charging him with forming a government after parliamentary elections.

The outgoing premier, Bisher Khasawneh, submitted his resignation to the king earlier in the day.

Under the kingdom's constitution, the government usually resigns after legislative elections. It is the king who appoints the prime minister, not parliament which has limited powers.

"King Abdullah on Sunday [Sept. 15] tasked Jafar Hassan with forming a new government," a palace statement said.

As well as being chief of staff, the 56-year-old Hassan was previously planning minister.

In a letter published by the palace, King Abdullah called on Hassan to "mobilise all efforts to support the steadfastness of our Palestinian brothers" in Gaza, the occupied West Bank and "Holy Jerusalem."

He also called on the premier-designate to "work with all our energy through Arab and international movements to protect the Palestinian people, and stop the attacks and blatant violations of humanitarian principles and international law."

In the election, Jordan's leading Islamist party, the Islamic Action Front, became the largest in parliament, winning 31 out of the 138 seats.

The IAF is a political offshoot of the Muslim Brotherhood in Jordan, and the result gives the Islamists their largest representation since 1989.