AMMAN, Jordan, April 22 (UPI) -- Protesters called Salafist jihadists have been demonstrating in Jordan, calling for the release of about 300 jailed relatives, officials said.
The ultra-conservative group has been trying to pressure Jordan into releasing people detained on a variety of charges, including terrorism, the BBC said Friday.
One of those in custody is Abu Mohammed al-Maqdisi, who was the spiritual adviser to slain al-Qaida in Iraq leader Abu Musab al-Zarqawi. He is being tried in a military court for allegedly recruiting people to join al-Qaida and other militant groups.
Political analysts call the Jordanian militants Salafist jihadists because of their extremist views. The group wants Islamic Shariah law to be implemented in Jordan and ultimately to set up an Islamic state, the BBC said.
Some of the group's members have been convicted of attempting to recruit people to fight against U.S.-led troops in Iraq and Afghanistan and plotting to attack U.S. and Israeli embassies in Amman.
Jordanian Salafist jihadist leader Ayman al-Balawi was arrested earlier this week. He is the brother of the al-Qaida operative who blew himself up in a CIA outpost in Afghanistan in 2009.
The attack by physician Human al-Balawi was one of the deadliest on the U.S. spy agency. The attack killed seven CIA agents and a Jordanian officer.
