Arms smuggling from Jordan: The Lebanese newspaper Al-Akhbar, which is close to Hezbollah, reported Saturday morning that authorities in the kingdom had arrested four Jordanian citizens of Palestinian origin. The reason: smuggling weapons to terrorist operatives in Judea and Samaria, especially Hamas operatives. A source told the newspaper that the arrests "raise tensions between Hamas and Jordan, and contacts between the sides have been interrupted."
The arrests come after the Jordanian army shot down a drone that entered the area earlier this month
The arrests "raise tensions between Hamas and Jordan, and contacts between the sides have been interrupted," Photo: Reuters
The kingdom from Syria - and carried a large amount of weapons. A Jordanian military source said at the time that Border Police forces were coordinating with the US military and spotted the aircraft before shooting it down in Jordanian territory.
For many months, Jordanians have been concerned about arms and drug smuggling, which is carried out as part of cooperation between pro-Iranian militias, local criminals, the Assad regime and Hezbollah. Against the backdrop of the sensitive situation on its northern border, Jordan gave the green light for the Assad regime's return to the Arab League in an attempt to obtain cooperation with it against smuggling. Indeed, it was recently reported that the Jordanian Air Force killed a drug dealer in southern Syria. Probably thanks to intelligence from the Syrian side.
Israeli President Isaac Herzog meets with Jordan's King Abdullah II at the climate conference in Sharm el-Sheikh // Photo: Haim Tzach/ GPO
In May, an unusual incident occurred at Allenby Crossing. Jordanian MP Imad al-Adwan was caught by the Israeli authorities with gold bars and about 200 pistols and rifles in his car. It later emerged that the rogue parliamentarian had carried out smuggling on several occasions, using his diplomatic passport. Al Adwan, who was detained for eight days, was eventually released to Jordan and referred to the country's judicial system. Al-Akhbar claimed that Israel conditioned his release on him being tried and given "appropriate punishment."
Over the past year, there have been calls in the Jordanian parliament to renew ties with Islamist elements such as Hamas and the Islamic Movement in Israel, in order to harm Israel. There were also reports of contacts between Amman and the terrorist organization on the issue.
In the 90s, senior Hamas figures operated in Jordan, and by the early 2000s they had left the country. Two years after a failed assassination attempt, senior ISIS operative Khaled Mashaal was expelled from the kingdom and settled in Syria. Now, it seems that despite the calls to renew relations with Hamas, the royal family is not enthusiastic about the possibility.
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