Jordan's parliament on Sunday approved a draft law to ban imports of Israeli gas to the country just days after they started flowing under a multi-billion-dollar deal struck in 2016. Many Jordanians oppose the Israeli gas deal.
The motion was passed unanimously by Jordan's 130 lawmakers and will be referred to the cabinet to be ratified into law, although legal hurdles will likely prevent it from coming into effect.
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The government has previously said it was a deal between companies rather than a political matter.
The $10 billion supply deal was originally struck between Jordan's state-owned utility and a US-Israeli consortium led by Texas-based Noble Energy, to provide gas to the country's power plants for electricity generation.
The deal was not referred to parliament for approval.
A source in the Israeli energy industry, speaking on condition of anonymity, said, "The gas agreement between Jordanian National Electric Power Company and American-based Noble Energy is being implemented from early January 2020, and no change is expected in that regard."
Although US ally Jordan has a peace treaty with Israel, the deal, which supplies Jordan for 15 years, has faced much popular opposition, with lawmakers arguing it makes the kingdom dependent on the Jewish state for energy.
Many Jordanians are also the descendants of Palestinians who moved to the country after the creation of Israel in 1948, and view Israel as an enemy that expelled their ancestors from their homes.
The Jordanian government said after the agreement was signed in 2016 that securing stable energy prices for the next decade could achieve annual savings of at least $500 million and help reduce a chronic budget deficit.
The import of Israeli gas has become a major focus in Jordan and sparked protests and calls for both the deal and the peace treaty to be scrapped.
"The gas of the enemy is an occupation. Down with the gas deal," placards carried by protesters said.
