A feud in Jordan’s royal family

family is unhappy in its own way. Jordan’s is no exception. There were sharp disagreements between King Hussein and Crown Prince Hassan, the brotherly duo who ruled the desert kingdom for decades. Weeks before his death in 1999, the ailing king flew back from an American hospital to remove his brother from the line of succession and make his son, Abdullah, heir apparent. But the Hashemites usually show a united front: Prince Hassan accepted his defenestration in silence.Thus it has been extraordinary to watch the overt feud between King Abdullah and his half-brother, Prince Hamzah (pictured). It began on April 3rd, when the authorities detained perhaps 20 people on vague charges of plotting against the crown. The prince was confined to a palace outside Amman, the capital. He confirmed his detention in a late-night video message that assailed the government for alleged corruption, nepotism and authoritarianism. “It has reached the point where no one is able to speak or express an opinion on anything without being bullied, arrested, harassed and threatened,” he said.