Jordan Blames Israel For Escalation In Palestine And Borders

JAKARTA - Jordan blamed Israel on Sunday for the recent escalation in Palestine, saying it expected violence to worsen, after a series of Israeli rocket and airstrikes in Gaza, Lebanon, and Syria.

"The Israeli government bears responsibility for the escalation in Jerusalem and throughout the occupied Palestinian territories," said Foreign Ministry spokesman Sinan Al Majali, The National News April 9.

The escalation in violence in the West Bank and Jerusalem, which has intensified since a far-right government took power in Israel in late December, spread across the borders this Easter weekend.

Israel has bombed targets in Syria and Lebanon in the last two days after rockets were fired from both countries.

A rocket exploded in northern Jordan overnight, Jordan's military said, highlighting the kingdom's close ties to Iran-backed militant groups.

Al Majali said Israel was to blame "for the damage which will get worse" if it did not stop its attack on Al Aqsa Mosque and what he described as "pressure" on worshippers.

Jordan has a long border with Israel, but the two countries signed a peace treaty in 1994.

The Hashemite monarchy, which has ruled Jordan since it was founded as a British protectorate in 1921, claims custodianship of Al Aqsa, one of Islam's holiest sites.

Meanwhile, Israel said the raids carried out by police on the Al Aqsa Mosque Complex were intended to remove what it described as extremists armed with firecrackers and stones.

Al Majali said Israel, as an occupying power under international law, must refrain from any action that would undermine the sanctity of the holy site.

In 2021, relations between Jordan and Israel deteriorated after violence at Al Aqsa led to an 11-day war between Israel and Hamas, one of the main pro-Iran groups in the Middle East.

Jordan has communications with Hamas, even though they expelled most of the group's leadership in the late 1990s. Most of the kingdom's 10 million people are from Palestine.