The former crown prince of Jordan says he has been placed under house arrest as part of a crackdown on critics.
In a video, Prince Hamzah bin Hussein, the half-brother of King Abdullah, accuses the country’s leaders of corruption, incompetence and harassment.
It comes after a number of high-level arrests said to be linked to an alleged coup plot.
The military earlier denied Prince Hamzah was under house arrest.
But it said he had been ordered to stop actions that could be used to target the country’s “security and stability”.
The move apparently comes after a visit by the prince to tribal leaders where he is said to have garnered some support.
Prince Hamzah has denied any wrongdoing and said he was not part of any conspiracy.
What does the prince say?
In the video recorded on Saturday, he says: “I had a visit from the chief of general staff of the Jordanian armed forces this morning in which he informed me that I was not allowed to go out, to communicate with people or to meet with them because in the meetings that I had been present in – or on social media relating to visits that I had made – there had been criticism of the government or the king.”
He says he was not accused of making the criticisms himself.
However, he went on to say: “I am not the person responsible for the breakdown in governance, the corruption and for the incompetence that has been prevalent in our governing structure for the last 15 to 20 years and has been getting worse… And I am not responsible for the lack of faith people have in their institutions.
“It has reached a point where no one is able to speak or express opinion on anything without being bullied, arrested, harassed and threatened.”
High level political arrests are rare in Jordan, a key US ally in the Middle East.
The country has a powerful intelligence agency that has been granted new powers since the coronavirus pandemic, which has drawn criticism from rights groups.
Egypt, the US and the Saudi Royal Court have expressed support for King Abdullah.