Jordanian activists vowed to continue their protest against a $10bn gas deal signed by the Jordanian government and Israel last month.

The agreement will see US-based Noble Energy and other investors in Israel's largest gas field supply Jordan's national electric company with 8.5 million cubic metres of gas over 15 years.

Upon announcement of the deal, thousands of protesters took to the streets of the capital Amman on Friday chanting "The enemy's gas is occupation" and "No to gas imports from the Zionist enemy" and calling for the cancellation of the deal.

The protest was the largest of its kind since 2012, when tens of thousands demonstrated for reforms in the midst of a wave of popular uprisings in the Arab world.

"A large aspect of this is about making Jordan dependent on Israel. We refuse to be subjected to Israeli pressure," said Hisham al-Bustani, coordinator of the campaign against the gas deal.

Imports from the Leviathan gas field are expected to start in three years, according to Noble Energy, the largest stakeholder leading the extraction project in the eastern Mediterranean.