King Abdullah of Jordan, a close U.S. ally, Tuesday replaced his prime minister after protests over food prices and poor living conditions, naming a former premier with a military background to head the government. A Jordanian official said the monarch officially accepted the resignation of Samir Rifai, a wealthy politician and former court adviser, and asked Marouf Bakhit to form a new cabinet. Demonstrators inspired by mass protests in Tunisia and Egypt had called for Rifai's dismissal. "(Bakhit) is a former general and briefly ambassador to Israel who has been prime minister before. He's someone who would be seen as a safe pair of hands," said Rosemary Hollis, professor of Middle East policy studies at London's City University.