Militants From Jordan Wound Israeli Soldiers In Rare Cross-Border Attack

Via Middle East Eye

At least two Israeli soldiers have been wounded in an attack by gunmen who entered Israeli territory from Jordan, according to Israeli media reports. The incident on Friday took place in Neot HaKikar in the south Dead Sea area, close to the border with Jordan.

Israeli media sources said that Israeli soldiers were searching the area for another possible attacker, while the Israeli army said it had killed two of the attackers and was looking for a third who fled the scene.

The attack came a day after Israel claimed the killing of Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar in Gaza. Earlier, the army said that its observers had noticed a group of men trying to infiltrate the border and had sent soldiers to confront them.

Military officials have also told residents of the area to remain indoors as soldiers carry out searches for any other potential fighters. Unconfirmed images purporting to be of the slain attackers show them in military attire.

Jordanian officials, however, have put out a statement saying that the attackers did not belong to the country’s armed forces and that the uniforms were not Jordanian military issue.

Since the start of Israel’s war on Gaza, Jordan’s leaders have had to walk a fine line between heightened anti-Israel sentiment in the country and ensuring its own bilateral relationship with Israel.

The country has a large population descended from Palestinian refugees forced to flee historic Palestine after the mass expulsions, widely known as the Nakba, and regularly sees mass protests in support of the Palestinian resistance in Gaza.

Jordan’s Islamic Action Front, which is affiliated with the Muslim Brotherhood, lauded the attack. In a statement it said: “We celebrate the heroic attack carried out by the Amer Qawwas and Hossam Abu Ghazala in the Dead Sea region.”

“We call on the government to reconsider its agreements with the Zionist enemy.”

In September, Jordanian national and truck driver Maher Dhiab al-Jazi was shot and killed at the Allenby Bridge crossing with the occupied West Bank after killing three Israeli security guards. In a letter he left for his family, he said he was motivated by Israel’s ongoing atrocities against Palestinians in Gaza.

At the same time, Jordan’s government has not significantly altered its diplomatic relationship with Israel, and trade ties between the two continue as normal.

After Iran launched missile salvos at Israel in April and again in October, Jordanian armed forces were involved in attempting to down missiles flying over Jordanian territory, prompting domestic criticism.