BRIDGE CROSSING, WEST BANK:
A gunman crossing from Jordan killed three Israelis at the Allenby Bridge border in the occupied West Bank before security forces shot him dead on Sunday, Israeli officials said, in what appeared to be an attack linked to the 11-month-old war in Gaza.
It was the first attack of its kind along the border with Jordan since Hamas carried out an assault on southern Israel on October 7, sparking the war in Gaza that has ratcheted up tensions across the region.
The attack took place in a commercial cargo area under Israeli occupation where Jordanian trucks offload cargo, officials said. The crossing, also known as the King Hussein Bridge, is about midway between Amman and Jerusalem.
They said that the attacker approached the area from Jordan in a truck, “exited the truck and opened fire” at the Israeli forces operating at the bridge. The attacker was killed, while three Israelis were pronounced dead as a result of the attack,” they added.
Shortly afterwards, Israel closed all three land border crossings with Jordan, according to the Israel Airports Authority which oversees such routes. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu linked the attack to larger conflict with Iran and Hamas in Gaza.
A Jordanian border official said at least two dozen Jordanian truck drivers had been detained by Israel. Jordan is investigating the shooting, its state-run Petra News Agency reported.
In Gaza, meanwhile, an Israeli airstrike early on Sunday killed five people, including two women, two children and a senior official in the Civil Defence. The Civil Defence said the strike targeted the home of its deputy director, Mohammed Morsi, in the Jabaliya camp.
Gaza’s Health Ministry says over 40,000 Palestinians have been killed in Gaza since the war began. The war has caused vast destruction and displaced around 90% of Gaza’s population of 2.3 million, often multiple times.
