federal unity with Egypt and Syria and reinstatement of the dismissed army officers, including Abu Nuwar. As a result of the congress, Hussein put Nablus, East Jerusalem and Amman under military curfew, dissolved political parties, imposed press censorship, dismissed municipal councils in the West Bank in favor of military governors, disbanded Palestinian-dominated army units, arrested al-Nabulsi (who had since been made foreign minister) and dismissed the cabinet of Prime Minister Fakhri al-Khalidi. Although he eventually relaxed some of these measures, namely military curfews and severe press censorship, Hussein's moves significantly curtailed the constitutional democracy that existed in Jordan in the mid-1950s. The incident strained Jordan's relations with Syria and Egypt. Egypt and Syria announced a union under the United Arab Republic, headed by Gamal Abdel Nasser in February 1958. The announcement led to Jordan and Hashemite Iraq to found the Arab Federation just a few weeks afterwards. On 14 July, King Faisal II of Iraq (Hussein's cousin) was killed in a bloody coup along with the rest of Hashemite family in Iraq. The coup transformed Iraq into a republic, thus ending the Federation between the two countries. Former prime minister Ibrahim Hashem and other Jordanian officials who were on an official visit to Iraq were also killed. See also Arab Federation Black September 14 July Revolution References Bibliography Jordan Coup d'état attempts in Asia 1957 in Jordan Hussein of Jordan