Thousands rallied across Jordan late Sunday as nationwide protests over fuel prices gripped the country for the fifth straight day, DPA reported.
In a series of demonstrations stretching from the northern city of Irbid to Tafileh, some 179 kilometres south of Amman, thousands of leftist, Islamist and independent citizens protested a government decision last week to end fuel subsidies.
The rallies marked the fifth day of often violent protests that in a 72-hour period led to more than 100 riots, 200 arrests, 70 injuries and the death of one citizen.
Amman served as the epicentre for Sunday's rallies, which featured three separate evening demonstrations calling for the government's resignation over the subsidy decision.
During a rally in the East Amman neighbourhood of Hay Al Tafaileh, some 300 protestors renewed provocative calls for King Abdullah II to abdicate over the crisis, chanting "Abdullah leave, leave" and "the people demand the toppling of Abdullah."
The calls for regime change mark an escalation in the country's 22-month-old protest movement, which prior to the fuel crisis had restricted its calls to "regime reform."
Insulting the king or threatening the government are crimes punishable under the Jordanian penal code, offences that carry up to 10 years in prison.
Meanwhile, hundreds of activists hit the streets in the cities of Tafileh, Karak and Irbid, demanding the resignation of Prime Minister Abdullah Ensour and the formation of a "national salvation government."
The evening rallies ended without incident or arrests, according to the Jordan Public Security Department.
Earlier on Sunday, thousands of schools across Jordan were forced to close a teachers launched a nationwide strike over the move, which led to an immediate 33 per cent rise in fuel prices and doubling the cost of cooking and heating gas.
More than 80 per cent of private and public schools were shuttered due to the work stoppage, according to the Jordan Teachers Association, which claims that the move aimed to pressure Amman to reverse its decision.
Teachers vowed to carry their strike into Monday after the government's alleged "failure to listen to the people."
Amman has defended the decision, claiming that the slashing of the 1.2 billion dollars in subsidies was necessary to avert a financial crisis.