The Jordanian Foreign Ministry on Sunday night issued a weak condemnation of the terrorist attack at the Allenby Crossing, in which three Israelis were murdered.
The Ministry said that the relevant Jordanian authorities “are closely following investigations into the shooting incident involving a Jordanian citizen on the Palestinian side of the King Hussein Bridge”.
Ministry spokesperson Ambassador Dr. Sufyan Qudah said that “preliminary investigations indicate the incident, which also led to the death of the shooter, was an individual act.”
The Ministry also reiterated what it said is “Jordan's firm stance in rejecting and condemning violence and the targeting of civilians for any reason, emphasizing the need to address the root causes and de-escalation measures that fuel such incidents.”
Yochanan Shchori, 61, Yuri Birnbaum, 65, and Adrian Marcelo Podsmesser, 57, were named as the three Israelis who were murdered in Sunday’s shooting attack at the Allenby Crossing.
The terrorist, who shot at them from close range using a pistol, was eliminated by security guards at the border crossing.
According to a preliminary investigation, the terrorist arrived in a truck from the Jordanian side of the border with a firearm hidden in the truck. When he reached the Israeli workers at the crossing, he pulled out the weapon and started shooting.
The IDF stated following the attack, "Following the initial report, a short while ago a terrorist approached the area of the Allenby Bridge from Jordan in a truck, exited the truck, and opened fire at the Israeli security forces operating at the bridge. The terrorist was eliminated by the security forces, three Israeli civilians were pronounced dead as a result of the attack."
Jordan signed a peace deal with Israel in 1994 but many locals are against the treaty. In addition, the Jordanian parliament, which is made up mostly of Islamists, remains anti-Israel and its members have more than once called to annul the peace treaty.
The Jordanian parliament has in the past approved a proposal to establish a committee to re-evaluate all formal ties with Israel, including the peace agreement.
That decision does not necessarily mean that the peace accords with Israel will be annulled, as such a decision requires the approval of the government, the royal palace and the council advising Jordan's King Abdullah II.