This case may be one of the most bizarre controversies that have affected Iraqi-Jordanian relations in years.
It all began after Iraqi diplomat Zainab Okla Al-Saadi left the Fairmont Hotel in Amman. According to reports, the hotel then accused him of taking “towels and other items” from his room.
“Saadi denied the allegations, accusing hotel staff of stealing her belongings and car and deliberately trying to defame her,” 964media news site reported. She demanded a “transparent and fair investigation.”Saadi even took a towel to a television interview to prove she had her own towels.The issue of taking towels and other items from hotel rooms has a long and complex history. Some people are known to take the soaps, while others have been known to take towels or even bathrobes.
Towels are frequently stolen from hotels, according to Travel Weekly Asia.
It does not stop there, however. Hotel guests reportedly also take TVs, minibars, hangers, and other items. Almost 80% of hotels are said to have their towels taken.
So, why does Iraq’s Foreign Affairs Ministry need to conduct a special investigation into the Jordanian towel mystery?
For one, Saadi feels slighted. She told Saudi Arabia-based AlHadath news channel she was, in fact, the victim, because her clothes were stolen.
“The towels are mine, not the hotel’s, I swear by God,” Saadi said.
The Iraqi embassy in Amman sent a letter about this issue to the Foreign Ministry in Baghdad.“According to the document, the incident began when the hotel’s alarm system was triggered by two bags belonging to the counselor,” Turkiye Today news site reported.The hotel alleges that six towels, two bathrobes, a clock, two cups, and other items have gone missing, the report said.“The incident led to a verbal altercation and chaos inside the hotel, prompting the embassy to intervene and resolve the situation,” it added.
“Towel thefts are rampant in Iraq.” According to Al Arabiya,
Saudi-based news channel Al Arabiya reported: “Towel thefts are rampant in Iraq.”The Iraqi Foreign Ministry said it was investigating the leak that led to controversy in this case, the report said.“It has taken the initiative to form an investigation committee to look into the circumstances of the matter and verify all its details in accordance with the approved legal and administrative frameworks,” it added.
Saadi has also sent a letter to the Iraqi Ambassador to Jordan , Omar al-Barzanji, and to the Iraqi Foreign Ministry regarding the theft of towels from a prominent hotel in Amman. In press statements, she demanded immediate intervention from the ministry and the Iraqi prime minister.”Although unlikely, this could lead to a significant diplomatic incident between Jordan and Iraq. One of the last times there was such a memorable diplomatic incident was when two of Iraqi president Saddam Hussein’s sons-in-law, Hussein Kamel Hassan and his brother, Saddam Kamel Hassan, defected to Jordan with Saddam’s daughters in 1995. The two men returned to Iraq in 1996 and were both killed.In Iraq, the towel issue will not disappear quickly. Saadi has tribal support from the Al-Sawaed clan.“Mohammed Blasim, a sheikh of the Al-Sawaed tribe in Iraq, asserted that Saadi does not [only] represent the Sawaed tribe, but a country like Iraq, with its history and civilization,” Al Arabiya reported.
This case is not just about towels: Iraqi pride, and that of all those who take soaps from hotels, is at stake.
By SETH J. FRANTZMAN
