"Jordanian authorities crack down on online speech during the war on Gaza, illegally arrest detainees’ family members"

In November, Jordanian Prime Minister Bisher Khasawneh asserted that none of the people who exercised their right to peaceful expression in solidarity with Gaza had been arrested or detained...Two months later, the Euro-Med Human Rights Monitor, an independent organization headquartered in Geneva, published a report detailing the systematic arrest of political activists....

Jordanian political activist Khaled Al-Natour was arrested on February 8 after a tweet criticizing Jordanian officials’ proposal to secure an export bridge by land to transport fruit and vegetables to the Israeli occupation...

“The Preventive Security Department contacted my brother to arrange a meeting with me,” Al-Natour told SMEX ... “To my surprise, I was arrested upon arrival and was told I was wanted for a cybercrime case.”...

The Security Department reasoned that my post was ‘inappropriate,’ although they charged me with using and managing online platforms to cause strife, undermine social peace, and publish false news, violating Articles 15 and 17 of the law.”...

As for the final judgment issued in his case after eight days of arrest and moving between several detention centers, Al-Natour told SMEX that he was acquitted at the Amman Criminal Court... Al-Natour’s case did not end with his acquittal... He was arrested a second time and sentenced to a fine of JOD 5,000 (approximately USD 7,000)...

Given the lack of clear criteria in the Cybercrime Law to differentiate between freedom of expression and “cybercrime,” ... final judgements and decisions are issued at the discretion of the Cybercrime Unit based on the opinions of the investigating judge or Attorney General...

At least 1,000 people – protesters and bystanders – were arrested during protests in support of Gaza in the Jordanian capital Amman within a one-month period between October and November 2023,” according to Amnesty...