Weapons caught in possession of Jordanian MP at Allenby Bridge
A member of the Jordanian parliament is being held in Israel on suspicion of arms and Gold smuggling, Jordanian's official news agency reported on Sunday.
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Imad Al-Adwan was arrested at the King Hussein Bridge border crossing from Jordan, after allegedly attempting to smuggle 200 handguns and assault rifles including m-16s, as well as gold, inside three bags, and planned to deliver them to the West Bank.
According to the report, the arrest was made on Saturday, and Al-Adwan was transferred for interrogation by Shin Bet. Israel has not responded officially to the report but sources with knowledge of the matter say this is a "very disturbing event because it involves a large number of firearms smuggled by a diplomat but added that Israel wants to avoid any crisis with their neighbor to the east.
The Jordanian Foreign Ministry said they are in contact with all relevant parties. "We are following up on the case of the Jordanian Member of Parliament Imad Al-Adwan who was arrested by the Israeli Occupation authorities due to alleged smuggling of quantities of weapons and gold," the ministry said in an official statement adding that the Foreign Ministry is cooperating with other of the kingdom's agencies to deal with the matter as soon as possible.
Al Adwan is a resident of the central Jordan city of Salt near Amman. He is an attorney with a Master's degree in international law and a member of the Palestine Committee in Jordan's parliament.
After his arrest was reported, Jordanian MP Khalil Atiya said he was arrested by the occupation and called for immediate action to bring about his release. He said the government would be responsible if Al Adwan is not freed.
Israel's security services work closely with Jordan on a variety of matters including events on Temple Mount and only last February, Israeli and Jordanian representatives met in the Jordanian capital to attempt to bring about regional calm.
Relations with Jordan are of the utmost importance for Israel, making this incident especially sensitive.