Jordanian king disbands parliament

King Abdullah of Jordan has dissolved parliament and ordered a general election to be held two years ahead of schedule. The decision on Tuesday to send home the country's 110 parliamentarians followed reports in the media accusing politicians of incompetently handling legislation and, in some cases, corruption. The royal decree instructed the civil service to organise a snap election that will replace the two-year old parliament, which dominated by independent and tribal MPs loyal to the king. Within 30 minutes of the dissolution being announced, websites were awash with postings applauding the decision.