Jordan king 'cancels' peace treaty land deal with Israel

Jordan's king has announced he will end a land agreement with Israel after protests demanding authorities reclaim two areas under Israeli control as a part of a peace deal.

King Abdullah II made the announcement on the bordering Baqoura and Ghamr areas on Sunday, the official Petra news agency reported.

"Baqoura and Ghamr have always been our top priority," the king tweeted.

"Our decision is to terminate the Baquoura and Ghamr annexes from the peace treaty out of our keenness to take all decisions that would serve Jordan," he added.

Jordan allowed Israel to lease the areas, known in Hebrew as Naharyaim and Zofar, for 25 years under a 1994 peace agreement.

The deadline for renewing the land agreement is this coming Thursday.

Last week, protesters in the Jordanian capital Amman demanded authorities reclaim sovereignty over the territories, The Jordan Times  reported.

Eighty-seven lawmakers recently signed a petition calling on the government to cancel the Baqoura and Ghamr deal.

Jordan, alongside Egypt, are the only Arab countries that have peace treaties and significant economic ties with Israel.