AMMAN, Jordan -- Two sons-in-law of Saddam Hussein, including the mastermind of Iraq's secret military programs, have defected to Jordan, dealing what analysts called a dramatic blow to the Iraqi president.


The Jordanian government said Thursday that Lieutenant General Hussein Kamel Hassan, who led military industrialization and the industry and minerals ministry, were in Amman. He was widely considered the second most powerful man in Iraq after Saddam.


He was accompanied by his brother -- Lieutenant Colonel Saddam Kamel Hassan, who was in charge of Saddam's guards -- a cousin with the rank of major, their families and aides.


Both senior men are married to daughters of Saddam and their request to Jordan's King Hussein for asylum was immediately granted.


An exiled Iraqi opposition group, the Supreme Council for Islamic Resistance in Iraq, said Saddam's son Uday -- said to be a rival of Hussein Kamel -- and former defense minister Ali Hassan Majeed were also in Amman and had asked for an urgent appointment with King Hussein.


Uday was believed to be trying to persuade the defectors to return to Iraq or at least limit the damage.


"If true, it's a sign of real panic," said a diplomat.


Hussein Kamel built Saddam's war machine, which invaded Kuwait five years ago only to be defeated by U.S.-led forces in the Gulf War.


"It's an extraordinary, dramatic development," another diplomat said. "On the level of military industrialization it will be a major blow. He had been directing it since 1987, in charge of all procurement, everything, right up to the last moment."


The defections raised the prospect of a campaign against the Iraqi leader. A senior Jordanian said Wednesday Hussein Kamel had already been in contact with Iraqis at home and abroad about creating "radical changes" in his country.


The Islamic Dawa Party said in London it would establish contact with the defectors, but another group, the Free Iraqi Council, dismissed them as being tainted with blood.


A Jordanian statement said: "Lieutenant General Hussein Kamel Hassan, who had the honor of meeting with His Majesty King Hussein after his arrival, appealed to His Majesty to allow him and his companions to stay in Jordan, appealing to His Majesty's care for them." King Hussein ordered the authorities to arrange their safe stay in Jordan, the statement said.


Jordan had a special relationship with Iraq after showing sympathy for Baghdad during the 1990-91 Gulf crisis. But ties worsened after Jordan signed a peace deal with Israel last year.


The Iraqi government's only comment was a brief statement on the official Iraqi News Agency saying the industry minister was relieved of his duties.


The location of the defectors was not disclosed, but Iraqi government Mercedes were parked at a Jordanian government guest palace in central Amman. A Jordanian armored car stood opposite the entrance to the well-guarded compound and police prevented any cars from stopping.


The defections caught Amman's large community of diplomatic "Iraq watchers" off guard, igniting speculation about the implications of the split in the secretive ruling circle.


Diplomats have long maintained that any serious threat to Saddam would have to come from those near him, because intense security and a record of ruthlessly suppressing unrest make a popular revolt unlikely.


Saddam has been in office since 1979 and effectively ran the country for years before that from the No. 2 position.


Diplomats said there had been signs of unease in the ruling circle, but they had not expected the defection of the man who built Iraq's military machine.


"So many ministers owe their positions to Hussein Kamel," said one diplomat, predicting "interesting eruptions" inside the Iraqi administration.


"It is a huge empire built up around him. Presumably that will all be dismantled and taken by those around Uday, who are a far lower caliber."