3 Israelis Are Fatally Shot at West Bank-Jordan Border Crossing
The New York Times
The Allenby crossing, near the West Bank city of Jericho, has been the scene of violence in the past.
A gunman killed three Israelis at a sensitive border crossing between Jordan and the Israeli-occupied West Bank on Sunday, according to the Israeli military.
The gunman arrived at the Israeli-controlled part of the Allenby Bridge crossing from Jordan in a truck and opened fire on Israeli security forces, the military said in a statement. The military did not identify the gunman, who was killed at the scene. It said the three victims were civilians.
The crossing, near the West Bank city of Jericho, is the main pathway for most Palestinians in the occupied territory to travel abroad, and has served as an entry point for some aid being delivered to the war-ravaged Gaza Strip.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of Israel described the gunman as “an abhorrent terrorist” and extended his condolences to the families of the victims, who Magen David Adom, Israel’s emergency rescue service, described as being in their 50s.
It was not immediately clear how the gunman managed to bring a weapon to the Israeli-controlled part of the crossing. The Israel Airports Authority said in a statement that the Allenby Bridge was closed in addition to two land crossings between Israel and Jordan.
Jordan’s Interior Ministry said in a statement that it was investigating the shooting. The country’s Foreign Ministry did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
