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Israel Evacuates Employees from its Jordan Embassy Following Shooting | ASHARQ AL-AWSAT English Archive 2005 -2017
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Security forces stand guard outside the Israeli embassy in Amman, Jordan on July 23, 2017. (AFP)


Amman, London – Diplomats and employees at the Israeli embassy in Jordan returned to Tel Aviv safely on Monday in wake of the shooting incident that took place on Sunday, the office of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said.

The evacuation of the employees included an Israeli security guard, who was involved in Sunday’s shooting at a residential building affiliated with the embassy, located in the Rabieh neighborhood in west Amman. Two Jordanians were killed in the shooting.

“The return of the envoys was made possible thanks to close cooperation which was held in the past day between Israel and Jordan,” Reuters quoted Netanyahu’s office as saying.

The Israeli announcement came after Jordan had asked that none of the Israeli embassy employees leave Amman before being questioned about Sunday’s incident that also left the assistant of the embassy’s security manager with multiple stab wounds to the abdomen.

Security and diplomatic sources asserted that Jordan rejected that the Israeli security guard who had fired at the two Jordanians leave the country before Amman ends its investigation into the incident.
But, Israel announced that the Israeli security guard has diplomatic immunity and should be repatriated.

The sources added that Jordan respects international laws and diplomatic norms, but at the same time, the authorities want to learn what happened at the embassy on Sunday.

On Monday, the Jordanian Public Security Department (PSD) said a second Jordanian died after succumbing to wounds he sustained in Sunday’s shooting. The Jordanian was a doctor, who happened to be at the embassy when the incident occurred, Petra news agency said.

Sources close to the family of the first Jordanian man killed on Sunday identified him as Mohammed Zakariya al-Jawawida, 17, from the Dawayima town in the occupied Palestinian territories.

The sources said the father of al-Jawawida owns a furniture shop in Amman, adding that the young man came to the Israeli embassy to deliver furniture.

Upon his arrival, a dispute erupted between him and the Israeli guard over the price of the furniture, which later developed into a quarrel that involved the shooting, the sources explained.