A Jordanian gunman shot and killed three Israeli settlers on Sunday at the Allenby Bridge crossing between Jordan and the West Bank, Israeli authorities reported. The attacker, identified as 39-year-old Maher al-Jazi, arrived in a truck at the Israeli-controlled commercial cargo area. The Israeli military released a statement saying, “The attacker approached the area, exited the truck, and opened fire at Israeli security forces” Al-Jazi was shot dead at the scene.
The three Zionist settlers who were killed at the West Bank and Jordan border were identified as Yohanan Shchori, Yuri Birnbaum, and Adrian Marcelo Podzamczer. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu condemned the attack, calling it “a heinous crime carried out by an abhorrent individual,” and expressed his condolences to the families of the victims. “We are surrounded by a murderous ideology led by Iran’s axis of evil. These extremists want to murder us all, regardless of who we are,” Netanyahu said in a cabinet meeting following the incident.
Palestinian resistance group Hamas, while not claiming responsibility, praised the attack, calling it “a natural response” to Israeli actions in Gaza and also stated “The Jordanian hero’s pistol in supporting our Al-Aqsa and our people was more effective than massive armies and a stacked military arsenal.”
Hamas further added that “Our fighters performed the funeral prayer in absentia for the martyr hero of the operation.” The family of Al-Jazi also labeled him as a ‘martyr’ and supported his action. In Jordan’s capital Amman, people celebrated the action and consider it as the heroic operation in which 3 Israeli soldiers were neutralized.
Following the incident, ‘the crossing’ which is regarded as a vital conduit for Palestinians going between the West Bank and Jordan was temporarily closed. Jordan’s Interior Ministry identified al-Jazi and confirmed that he acted alone. The ministry is working to repatriate his body. An Israeli military spokeswoman stated, “There are serious questions about how a gunman was able to enter such a militarized area.” Concerns regarding security at the extremely sensitive border have been highlighted by the incident.
