~*~ The Chanukah War ~*~
Jordanian Gunman Opened Fire at Border Guards in Eilat
An unidentified gunman opened fire at an Israeli Border Guard patrol from the Jordanian side of the border north of Eilat.

by Hana Levi Julian, Arutz Sheva
January 13, 2009

Yitzhak Rabin Border Terminal
 

An unidentified gunman opened fire at an Israeli Border Guard patrol from the Jordanian side of the border north of Eilat early Tuesday morning.

The Border Guards returned fire. No one was injured in the incident, the first such shooting in more than a decade.

According to Radio News 10, a Jordanian soldier shot at the Israeli Border Guard jeep as it made its way around the Yitzchak Rabin Border Crossing between the two nations.

Israel and Jordan have had a peace treaty in place since 1994. Relations between the two countries have been friendly even further back, although official contacts were generally kept under wraps. However, tensions in the area have been high recently due to Israel’s military operation in Gaza.

The IDF Spokesperson’s Office said the identity of the gunman was unclear.

According to a worker at the Arava Border Crossing, the terminal was immediately closed. “We don’t know when it will reopen,” she said.

On Sunday, there was a similar shooting incident on the border between Syria and Israel, when a lone gunman from the Syrian side fired a number of bullets at a vehicle belonging to IDF soldiers who were doing some engineering work in the area. No one was injured in the incident, although the vehicle was damaged.

Last week, an old age home sustained a direct hit after unidentified terrorists launched a Katyusha attack on northern Israel from Lebanon. Four of the missiles were fired at Nahariya, lightly injuring two people and sending a number of others into severe emotional trauma. The IDF returned fire.