Jordan claims to have foiled terror attack on Israel

Jordan has claimed that it foiled an alleged terrorists attack on Israeli targets in the occupied West Bank. Five suspects, who are all Jordanian citizens, were arrested in February over a plot to carry out suicide attacks, however details of the arrest were only reported yesterday.

Citing a judicial source, the Times of Israel reported that the trial of the five men had begun recently at the state security court, a military tribunal that usually deals with terrorism-related cases.

“The state security court recently began legal proceedings against five people accused of involvement in a terrorist plot, which the intelligence unit foiled in February,” the source said.

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The suspects are accused of “planning to carry out suicide attacks against Israeli targets in the West Bank,” the source added.

Though the alleged plot was foiled four months ago, no explanation was provided for why news of the arrests was delayed. There is however speculation that release of details of the terror plot is related to Israel’s planned annexation of the West Bank.

There has been ongoing tension between Amman and Tel Aviv since Israel announced its intention to annex the occupied West Bank and the Jordan Valley. Jordan’s foreign minister warned yesterday of serious consequences if Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu goes ahead with his plans, which would be another clear violation of international law.

Jordan’s foreign minister was doubly scathing in his denunciation of Israel last month when he suggested that Israel’s illegal annexation would “institutionalise apartheid.”

With the decision over annexation a month away, it is suggested that the release of the details of the alleged terror plot may force Israel to reconsider its plan if it’s shown that the Zionist state is endangering its own security by siezing more Palestinian territory in contravention of international law.

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