27 Sep 2021; MEMO: Dozens of Jordanians protested in the capital, Amman, yesterday calling on the government to abolish a $10 billion gas agreement signed by the state-owned National Electric Power Company (NEPCO) with Israel.
The protesters gathered near the Ministry of Energy and NEPCO's headquarters and raised banners denouncing the deal.
Member of the event's follow-up committee, Muhammad Al-Absi, said the stand coincides with the passage of five years since the deal was signed.
"Today we reiterate our call, which did not stop at all, to demand the cancellation of this agreement. We say there is no way but to cancel this agreement, which will make this country a pawn in the hands of the Zionist entity, and will be used to blackmail us about anything as it did in the water file," he added.
Protester Suleiman Sweis said: "I stand today with my colleagues in order to protect the future generations of Jordan, and to preserve their dignity and Jordan's sovereignty."
The deal signed in 2016 between NEPCO and Noble Energy; operator of Israel's Leviathan gas field in the Mediterranean, stipulates that the occupation state will provide Jordan with about 45 billion cubic metres of gas, over a period of 15 years, starting from January 2020.
According to NEPCO, buying Israeli gas saves about $300 million compared to buying it from international markets.
However, Jordan has alternatives to importing gas from Israel, including from Egypt, Iraq, and Algeria.
