Jordan closes Syrian border after blast kills 6 troops
Jordan has closed its borders with Syria following a bomb blast at a military post outside a Syrian refugee camp which claimed the lives of six soldiers and injured a dozen more.
Following the Tuesday attack that took place outside the Rukban camp in the area where the borders of Iraq, Syria, and Jordan meet, Jordanian Army General Mishal al-Zibn announced that the northern and northeastern border strip with Syria is a closed military zone as of Tuesday.
"Any vehicle and personnel movement within these areas that move without prior coordination will be treated as enemy targets and dealt with firmly and without leniency," he said in a statement.
The measures will likely hamper aid delivery to the tens of thousands of Syrian refugees waiting at the border camps to be screened for links to the Daesh Takfiri terrorist group.
Jordan’s King Abdullah II vowed to strike back at the perpetrators “with an iron fist,” adding that, “Such heinous terrorist acts will only make us more determined to carry on with our fight against terrorism and its groups who plotted in the dark against the men who protect the country and its borders.”
Moreover, Jordanian Foreign Minister Nasser Judeh condemned the attacks, while the US labeled them as a "cowardly terrorist act," adding that it will continue its “unwavering support” for Jordan.
Syria has been gripped by foreign-sponsored militancy since March 2011. Damascus says Saudi Arabia, Turkey, and Qatar are the main supporters of the militants fighting the government forces.
UN Special Envoy for Syria Staffan de Mistura estimates that over 400,000 people have been killed in the Syrian conflict since March 2011. The UN has stopped its official casualty count in the Middle Eastern state, citing its inability to verify the figures it receives from various sources.
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