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Sheikh Khalifa Bin Abdulla Bin Hamad Al-Khalifa has been named as Bahrain’s ambassador to Amman, in the latest refresh of heads of missions.

Saudi Arabia is leading a fresh effort from the Gulf to assert its regional influence in an attempt to bring the Gaza war to an end, there has been no indication that Israel would consider reducing the intensity of its relentless bombing campaign as it seeks vengeance for the brutal Hamas assault of 7 October.

Global and regional powers have drawn up a series of plans to develop new trade corridors through Gulf countries over recent years, with the latest emerging at the G20 summit in India which will pass through the UAE, Saudi Arabia and on to Jordan and Israel. The ambitious plan could take decades to realise and will face competition from rival schemes backed by Iran, Iraq, Russia and Turkey. 

Numerous Gulf royals were among the 1,700 guests at the wedding of Jordan's Crown Prince Al-Hussein Bin Abdullah II to Rajwa Al-Saif of Saudi Arabia in Amman – although it was notable that members of the Al-Saud family were absent from any of the official photos released from the celebration.

Khalaf Abdel Rahman Hamid Al-Rumaithi was extradited from Jordan to the UAE. He was convicted in the UAE on terrorism-related charges in a notorious mass trial in 2013. Now a Turkish citizen and resident in Turkey, but formerly a senior civil servant in the UAE, Al-Rumaithi was arrested by the Jordanian authorities when visiting Amman.

Leaders from across the Arab Gulf states and Egypt have been travelling around the region to heal fractures and head off the perceived threat from Iran’s nuclear ambitions, amid speculation that more GCC member states could move towards normalisation with Israel when US President Joe Biden comes to the region.

A five-day exercise led by Saudi Arabian Western Fleet commander Rear Admiral Yahya Bin Mohammed Al-Asiri and involving Egyptian, Djiboutian, Jordanian, Sudanese and Yemeni forces concluded in June.

The Family Court ruling on the divorce between Dubai Ruler Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid Al-Maktoum (MBR) and Princess Haya Bint Al-Hussein of Jordan revealed the extent of support for her brother in Jordan, including an ill-fated attempt to support his ambitions in world football.

Jordan’s King Abdullah II and Queen Rania Al-Abdullah made a brief tour of the Gulf in November, starting in Manama on 22 November and moving on to Abu Dhabi the following day. It came as the parliament in Amman began debating proposed political reforms which would see the prime minister chosen by parliamentary majority rather than picked by the king.

The operation mounted by King Abdullah II of Jordan to pre-empt an alleged plot centred on his half-brother Prince Hamzah has prompted speculation about the Saudi crown prince’s potential involvement, but while MBS has a record of muscular meddling, evidence of a scheme to undermine the Jordanian court is elusive.

The apparent involvement of Bassem Awadallah in the alleged plot to overthrow King Abdullah II signals the fall of a Palestinian Jordanian (born in Jerusalem in 1964) who flew high in Hashemite politics and later cultivated the senior Saudi leadership.

The Ministry of Defence signed a memorandum of understanding with the Jordanian government covering military co-operation and industries on 14 April.

Nasdaq Dubai ICD sukuk listing: The Islamic Corporation for the Development of the Private Sector has listed a $600m Sukuk (Islamic bond) on the Nasdaq Dubai market, to support private sector activities in the ICD’s 55 member countries. The debt has been allocated to investors in the Middle East, Asia and Europe and brings the total value of Nasdaq Dubai’s Sukuk listings to more than $74bn.

King Abdullah Bin Hussein’s special envoy to Saudi Arabia Bassem Awadallah is a powerful figure in Jordanian circles and the main conduit to Deputy Crown Prince Mohammed Bin Salman (MBS). A former head of the royal court, Awadallah is also a controversial figure in Jordan. His Palestinian background is a sensitive point for East Bank Jordanians, while his strong free-market economic views do not always find favour.

Prime minister Marouf Bakhit was in Abu Dhabi on 17 April to seek financial support at a meeting with UAE deputy prime minister and presidential affairs minister Sheikh Mansour Bin Zayed Al-Nahyan. Sheikh Mansour said the Gulf Co-operation Council (GCC) was looking at ways of giving Jordan a more central focus for economic and developmental support. The GCC is setting up a $20bn fund to assist development in the region, particularly in the poorer states of Bahrain and Oman (GSN 896/13).