|
Listen to article
|
Three Israeli guards were shot dead at a border crossing between the occupied West Bank and Jordan by a truck driver on Sunday before being “eliminated,” according to Israel’s military. Meanwhile, Israel continued to strike Gaza with new attacks.
Jordan’s interior ministry identified the shooter as Jordanian national Maher Diab Hussein al-Jazi, citing “preliminary investigations”.
Amid escalating violence in the West Bank, including extensive Israeli raids and Palestinian attacks, the unusual assault at the Allenby Bridge crossing occurred. This incident unfolded against the backdrop of the year-long Israel-Hamas Gaza war.
Read Also: Protesters Flood French Streets To Oppose New Prime Minister
The military said “a terrorist” reached the crossing area, also known as the King Hussein Bridge, in a truck “from Jordan”.
The driver “exited the truck and opened fire at Israeli security forces operating at the bridge”, a military statement said.
“Three Israeli civilians were pronounced dead as a result of the attack,” it said, clarifying to AFP that they were “security guards” and not in the army or police.
The attacker was shot dead, the military added.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu denounced the assailant as a “despicable terrorist” inspired by “a murderous ideology” which he said was fuelled by Iran.
Hamas praised the attack but did not claim responsibility for it, adding it “affirms the Arab peoples’ rejection of the (Israeli) occupation, its crimes, and its ambitions in Palestine and Jordan”.
The only way for Palestinians from the West Bank to leave without entering Israel, which has controlled the area since 1967, is through the crossing in the Jordan Valley.
The escalation of violence in the West Bank has coincided with the outbreak of conflict in Gaza, which was sparked by an attack from Hamas on Israel on October 7th.
On August 28, the Israeli military carried out coordinated operations in multiple cities and refugee camps in the northern West Bank, resulting in the deaths of at least 36 Palestinians, as reported by the Palestinian health ministry based in Ramallah.
The military also stated that it has eliminated 35 militants. Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad claimed at least 14 of the fatalities as members.
