From concessions to repression: Explaining regime survival strategies in Jordan during Black September

Abstract

ABSTRACTWhen do Middle Eastern regimes respond to domestic threats with repression, and when do they accommodate opponents through offering concessions? This article examines the Jordanian monarchy’s showdown with the Palestinian fedayeen in the late 1960s and early 1970s, explaining why King Hussein’s policy toward the fedayeen evolved over time from concessions to repression. It demonstrates that the King’s evolving survival strategy resulted from shifts in Jordan’s domestic and regional political context. The article thus conceives of authoritarian survival strategies as a balancing act, in which regime survival strategies must simultaneously confront threats while at the same time placating key constituencies.