Jordan's King Abdullah has appointed Major General Ahmad Husni as the new head of the kingdom's intelligence service.

The appointment of Maj Gen Husni as director of the General Intelligence Department was made by royal decree with effect from May 1, the state Petra news agency reported. He was also promoted from the rank of brigadier general.

He replaces Lieutenant General Adnan Jundi, who was promoted by royal decree from the rank of major general with effect from May 1. A royal decree was also issued accepting the resignation of Lt Gen Jundi from his post as director of the GID, Petra said. He had served in the post since March 2017.

The appointment of Maj Gen Husni, who previously served as director of intelligence in Amman for five years, comes as Jordan faces a threat from extremist militant ideology epitomised by the rise of ISIS in neighbouring Iraq and Syria.

In a public letter to the new GID chief, King Abdullah said he was entrusting Maj Gen Husni to lead the security agency through "an intricate phase" for the region that posed unprecedented challenges to the kingdom.

The king said Jordan had managed to overcome many of these obstacles with the support of the armed forces, the GID and other security bodies, according to the contents of the letter reported by the Jordan Times.

“The GID’s career has been a bright and honorable one, but like any other public institution, it was not void of some transgressions by a small minority that placed its own interests above those of the country, which called for immediate rectification,” the king wrote.

The appointment of a new intelligence chief came a week after King Abdullah made several changes to posts in the royal court. He appointed Bishr Al Khasawneh as his communication and co-ordination adviser, Kamal Al Nasser as policies and information adviser and Manar Al Dabbas and Mohammed Al Assass as his general advisers.