Security forces shoot suspected weapons smuggler crossing from Jordan
Suspect lightly injured; weaponry, including pistols and rifles, recovered, army says; accomplice escapes back across border as police open fire
Israeli forces opened fire on two men as they tried to smuggle weapons across the border from Jordan, injuring one of them, the Israel Defense Forces said Wednesday.
The wounded suspect suffered light injuries and was taken to a hospital in Israel, the army said.
Security forces found nine pistols, six rifles and other weapons that the men were apparently trying to smuggle into the country.
The army said that during the night IDF soldiers detected the two men as they crossed the border. Police intercepted the pair and opened fire on them, and one man was hit while the other returned to Jordan. A flare launched during the incident started a brush fire in the area that was brought under control, the statement said.
There were no injuries to security forces.
The injured suspect is a Jordanian citizen, 49. He was brought to Poriya hospital in Tiberias, reports said.
The incident occurred near Kibbutz Gesher, south of Tiberias, and near what was until recently the so-called “Island of Peace,” where Jordanians and Israelis both had nearly free access. Jordan brought to an end Israeli access last year.
On Tuesday evening, the IDF said two Sudanese men crossed into Israel from Lebanon, ostensibly searching for work. Hebrew media reports said they crossed the border near Dovev, an Israeli village north of Safed that lies just across the border from the Lebanese village of Yaroun. They were unarmed and were taken for questioning by the army.
On Sunday, Israeli troops shot a man who crossed the border from Lebanon for as-yet unknown reasons. The army said the suspect was flown to hospital to be treated for his injuries. It said the suspect crossed into Israel near Mount Dov, also known as Shebaa Farms, a contested area along the border that is claimed by Israel, Lebanon and Syria.
The Hezbollah-affiliated al-Manar news outlet claimed the man was a shepherd with Syrian citizenship, walking his flock through the area. “The event is being investigated,” the IDF said at the time. Channel 12 news reported that an initial probe by the army found the suspect had entered some 100 meters into Israeli territory when he ran into soldiers lying in a defensive ambush.
The army has upped its presence in the area due to increased attempts to smuggle weapons and drugs across the border, Channel 13 news reported.
