Al Ghad, one of the leading newspapers in Amman, Jordan, decided to have a little fun on April Fool’s Day.  Inspired by War of the Worlds, Orson Welles’ classic radio play that caused a panic in the United States, the newspaper decided to report about aliens landing in the town of Jafr, about 185 miles from the capital.  The trouble is, nobody reminded Jafr’s mayor of the date.  When the story hit, Mohammed Mleihan and the town of Jafr panicked.

That’s right, the entire town got swept up by a joke.  They called off school.  The mayor sent security forces out into the desert to look for aliens.  The residents streamed out of town and the mayor nearly called for a mass evacuation according to one of the town’s emergency disaster plans.  Now, to save face thanks to lots of mocking scrutiny, Mayor Mleihan is threatening to sue the paper over the prank, which is shaping up to be one of the most epic April Fool’s pranks ever.

Tags: April Fool’s Day hoax causes a panic, Jafr, Jordan, Al Ghad, UFO prank causes panic, UFO Hoax, Mohammed Mleihan, town falls for April Fool’s Day joke

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