Jordan arrests suspect after deadly attack at Palestinian refugee camp

AMMAN (Reuters) – Jordanian authorities arrested a suspect in the attack at a Palestinian refugee camp on Monday that killed three security officers and two others, state television and an official said.

Initial investigations suggested the attack at the intelligence department’s office at the Baqaa camp was an “individual and isolated act,” according to Jordanian government spokesman Mohammad al-Momani. He gave no further details.

The kingdom, a US ally for decades and with close security ties with Israel, has long been a target of radical Sunni Muslim fundamentalist groups including al-Qaida and Islamic State.

King Abdullah has repeatedly warned that the threat from hardline Sunni groups poses the biggest threat to Jordan’s longterm stability.

Amman has imprisoned dozens of hardline Islamists in the last few years, many of whom had come from Syria or were arrested while trying to cross the border.