Jordanian jets strike Syrian village after church killings

The routine movement of travelers and goods across the border between Jordan and Syria has stopped. Syrian officials closed the Nassib crossing on Monday, halting all passenger and commercial traffic in both directions. They described the move as necessary to protect workers and travelers following a Jordanian military strike in the southern Daraa province.

Jordanian fighter jets targeted what the military called terrorist organizations in a Syrian village. Syrian health officials said the blast killed five people. Among the dead were women, children, and an elderly man. The Jordanian military stated that the attack killed and wounded several terrorists but did not provide a specific body count for its side.

This exchange follows a shooting at a Greek Orthodox church funeral in Karak on Friday. Nine people died in that attack, and 34 others were injured. Senior security officials in Jordan confirmed that their forces arrested three suspects earlier on Monday. The men, identified as two brothers and their brother-in-law, were found hiding in an abandoned house in a village near the church before dawn.

Mazen al-Faraya, the interior minister, told state-affiliated television that all three attackers were Jordanian. He noted that they had been holed up in a building near the site of the initial attack. The Public Security Directorate referred to the suspects as terrorists without naming them publicly.

A diplomatic gap emerged over the coordination of the strike. Jordan said it had co-ordinated the action with the Syrian government. Syria disputed this, stating it had not been notified of the Monday attack. Syrian authorities said they had opened direct communication channels with Jordanian officials and launched comprehensive investigations to establish the full circumstances of the targeting.