AMMAN (Reuters) – A gunman was killed and three police officers were wounded after a shooting near the Israeli embassy in neighboring Jordan, a security source and state media said on Sunday.
Police shot a gunman who had fired at a police patrol in Amman’s Rabiah neighborhood, state news agency Petra reported, citing public security, adding that investigations were ongoing.
Jordanian government Communications Minister Mohamed Momani described the shooting as a terrorist attack targeting the country’s public security forces. It said in a statement that investigations into the attack were underway.
Jordanian police had earlier cordoned off an area near the heavily guarded embassy after gunshots were heard, witnesses said. Two witnesses said police and ambulances rushed to the Rabiah neighborhood, where the embassy is located.
The area is a flashpoint for frequent anti-Israel demonstrations. The kingdom has seen some of the largest peaceful demonstrations in the entire region as anti-Israel sentiment rises over the war in Gaza.
Police had asked residents to stay in their homes while security personnel searched for the culprits, a security source said.
Many of Jordan’s 12 million citizens are of Palestinian origin; They or their parents were expelled or fled to Jordan in the fighting that accompanied the creation of Israel in 1948. Many have family ties on the Israeli side of the Jordan River.
Jordan’s peace treaty with Israel is unpopular among many citizens who see the normalization of relations as a betrayal of the rights of their fellow Palestinians.