Jordan's former crown says he is under house arrest

The half-brother of Jordan's King Abdullah has said that he has been placed under house arrest by Jordanian authorities and accused the country's leadership of corruption and incompetence.

Report informs that in a videotaped statement leaked to the British Broadcasting Corp., Prince Hamzah bin Hussein said he was visited early Saturday by the country's military chief and told, "I was not allowed to go out, to communicate with people or to meet with them."

He said his security detail was removed, and his phone and Internet service had been cut. He said he was speaking over satellite Internet but expected that service to be cut as well. The BBC says it received the statement from Hamzah's lawyer.

He said he told the army chief: "I am not the person responsible for the breakdown in governance, for the corruption and for the incompetence that has been prevalent in our governing structure for the last 15 to 20 years and has been getting worse by the year. I am not responsible for the lack of faith that people have in their institutions. They are responsible."

The country's top general had earlier denied that Hamzah – a former crown prince stripped of the title in 2004 – was arrested or under house arrest, even as authorities announced former senior officials' arrests close to the ruling monarchy.

Hamzah was asked to "stop some movements and activities that are being used to target Jordan's security and stability," said Gen. Yousef Huneiti, the army chief of staff.