AMMAN, Sept 3: Jordan’s King Abdullah has blocked a hike in the price of the low-grade fuel used by the poor in the aid-dependent kingdom, which is struggling to absorb refugees from neighbouring Syria.

The planned price hike, which sparked scattered street protests by the government’s tribal and Islamist opponents, would be the second this year under the IMF-guided measures to cut subsidies and ease budget strains. Palace officials said on Monday, the king had asked Prime Minister Fayez al-Tarawneh’s government to freeze the 10 per cent rise in the price of lower-grade gasoline.

On Sunday, 89 of the 120 deputies in the country’s lower house of parliament signed a petition urging the king to dismiss Tarawneh over the move, which took effect on Saturday.

However, Jordan’s finances have been weakened by higher welfare spending to buy social peace during the Arab Spring, and by the cost of caring for refugees from Syria. —Reuters