Jordan's King Abdullah II called for national unity on Sunday, two days after a man died and 160 people were injured in clashes between protesters and government supporters. "The most important thing now is our national unity, which must not be touched," the king told tribal leaders in the southern town of Petra, a major archaeological and tourist site.
"We need to stay away from any behaviour or attitude that would affect our unity."
The state-run Petra news agency quoted the king as saying that Jordan "is going ahead with political and economic reforms, strongly and enthusiastically. There is nothing that we fear.
"We understand the difficult circumstances and challenges in the country and the region, but we are optimistic about the future that we are trying to build," he said.