Jordan denied Wednesday reports by Israeli newspapers that King Abdullah II had made stinging attacks against Iran, Syria and Lebanon's Hizbullah movement. That denial was corroborated by a Jewish-American leader before whose organization the king allegedly made the remarks. Two Israeli newspapers - Haaretz and Yediot Ahronot - reported Wednesday that the king had said Syria and Hizbullah were encouraging Palestinian resistance fighters to wage attacks against Israel, and described them as "the greatest threats to stability in the Middle East."Yediot described Abdullah's comments as "an attack of rare severity," saying the monarch accused Damascus, Hizbullah and Tehran of trying to fan attacks to divert world attention from events in Lebanon. "What was reported out of the meeting that was held between King Abdullah II and a delegation of leaders of American Jewish Organizations is not accurate," said James Tisch. Tisch, chairman of the Conference of Presidents of Major American Jewish Organizations, was part of a delegation that met with the king in Washington. The monarch "briefed the delegation on the peace process and the need to support Abu Mazen and the peace process," he said in reference to Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas.
According to Tisch, Abdullah "said should any violence occur, (Israeli) Premier Ariel Sharon should not be quick to blame the Palestinian leadership." Asma Khodr, a Jordanian government spokeswoman, confirmed the version given by Tisch and said Abdullah's "words were twisted" by the Israeli media. "On the contrary, King Abdullah stressed the brotherly ties that Jordan has with both Syria and Lebanon and Hizbullah's role on the Lebanese political scene," she said.