Abdullah said he informed Israel of his decision. „We are practicing our full sovereignty on our land,“ he said. „Our priority in these regional circumstances is to protect our interests and do whatever is required for Jordan and the Jordanians.“

Abdullah did not give a reason for his decision, but he has faced escalating domestic pressure to end the lease and return the territories to full Jordanian control. Last week, demonstrators demanding an end to Israeli ownership of the lands marched in Jordan‘s capital of Amman last week.