Jordan shoots dead 5 approaching its borders from Syria

AMMAN: Jordan’s army said on Sunday its border guards killed five people who were approaching its frontier from Tanf, a Syrian desert town where US special forces training opposition fighters are based.

The town has been a flashpoint in recent weeks, as militias backed by Iran have tried to get near the US garrison, prompting US coalition jets to strike back.

Tanf lies near the strategic Damascus-Baghdad highway that was once a major weapons supply route for Iranian weapons into Syria.

The Jordanian army said it destroyed a car and two motorbikes in the incident.

The army statement did not give any details of the identity of the men and whether they were smugglers or militants in the area where Jordan’s northeastern borders meet both Iraq and Syria.

The statement, however, said that before the shooting, a convoy of nine cars had approached from the Tanf area but fled after the army fired warning shots.

Daesh militants launched a suicide attack last April on the heavily defended base in which the Pentagon said an estimated 20-30 Daesh fighters were involved. US jets bombed the militants in the hit-and-run attack.

Delays in Jordan trial

A Jordanian military court says it will appoint a lawyer for a Jordanian soldier charged with murder in the shooting deaths of three US military trainers.

The court was to hear the case Sunday, but the defendant, 1st Sgt. Marik Al-Tuwayha, appeared without a lawyer.

Judge Mohammed Afif said he would appoint a defense lawyer and set the next hearing for Tuesday.

The US Army Green Berets were killed when their convoy came under fire at the gate of an air base in southern Jordan in November. Jordan, a close US military ally, initially suggested the Americans triggered the shooting by disobeying orders of Jordanian troops. Jordan later withdrew this claim.

Afif has said the shootings were a criminal matter and not linked to terrorism.