Syria has closed the Nassib border crossing with Jordan after Jordanian warplanes struck targets in southern Syria on Monday evening, in an operation Amman says targeted Islamic State militants and Damascus says killed seven civilians, including three children and a woman.
The closure, announced on Tuesday, marks a sharp deterioration in relations between the two neighbours, who now publicly disagree over a basic fact of the operation: whether it was carried out in coordination.
Jordan says its air force struck what it described as militant hideouts in southern Syria after determining that the suspects behind last week’s deadly attack on a church in Jordan were linked to terrorist groups operating across the border. Syria’s Civil Defence said seven people, including three children and a woman, were killed in the strikes.
Key Takeaways
- Syria closed the Nassib border crossing with Jordan on Tuesday after Jordanian airstrikes on southern Syria.
- Jordan says it killed more than 20 Islamic State militants; Syria says seven civilians, including three children, were killed.
- The two countries disagree over whether the strikes were coordinated, and have since agreed to form a joint security committee.
What Jordan Says Happened
Jordan’s Government Communication Minister, Mohammed al-Momani, said on Tuesday that Jordan had killed more than 20 Islamic State militants in the airstrikes on southern Syria on Monday evening. He added that Jordan regrets civilian casualties.
Jordan said its air force struck the targets after determining that the suspects behind last week’s church attack were linked to terrorist groups operating in southern Syria. Senior government security officials said on Monday that Jordanian security forces had arrested two brothers and their brother-in-law after a shootout over the church violence, which killed nine people.
There has been no claim of responsibility by Islamic State for the church attack, according to the reports.
The strikes have left two neighbours publicly disagreeing over what happened — and over whether they acted together.
What Syria Says Happened
Syria’s account differs sharply. The Syrian Civil Defence said seven people, including three children and a woman, were killed in the Jordanian strikes. Damascus said the airstrikes were carried out without coordination with the Syrian government, and that it had opened an investigation into the attacks.
The closure followed that dispute. The Nassib crossing is the main road link between the two countries, and its closure immediately raises questions for trade, travel and the movement of people across a border that both sides have an interest in keeping open.
- Jordanian airstrikes hit southern Syria on Monday evening, following last week’s deadly church attack in Jordan.
- Jordan reports more than 20 militants killed; Syria reports seven civilians killed, including three children.
- Jordan says the operation was coordinated with Damascus; Syria says it was not, and has opened an investigation.
- Syria closed the Nassib border crossing on Tuesday in response to the strikes.
Why the Strikes Happened
The immediate trigger was last week’s attack on a church funeral in Karak, in southern Jordan, which killed nine people and shocked the country. Jordanian officials linked the suspects to groups operating in southern Syria, and Jordanian security forces arrested two brothers and their brother-in-law after a shootout connected to the church violence.
Jordan framed the airstrikes as retaliation and prevention: an operation against militant hideouts linked to the church attack, and against what Amman described as confirmed threats to Jordan’s security. The Jordanian armed forces said the operation was conducted in coordination with Damascus — a claim Syria explicitly contradicted.
The dispute over coordination matters because it goes to sovereignty. If Damascus was consulted, the strikes look like joint counter-terrorism; if it was not, they look like a cross-border attack by one neighbour on another, with civilian deaths attached.
A Joint Security Committee — the Latest Step
In the latest development, Jordan and Syria have agreed to form a joint security committee to examine the details and repercussions of the recent Jordanian airstrikes against Islamic State sites in Syria, the two countries’ foreign ministries said in a joint statement.
Jordanian Foreign Minister Ayman Safadi told his Syrian counterpart Asaad al-Shaibani that Tuesday’s strikes were based on field intelligence and aimed at neutralising confirmed threats and imminent attacks targeting Jordan’s security, while expressing deep regret over civilian deaths during the operations.
The committee gives both sides a channel to manage the fallout — and a test of whether the border, and the relationship, can be steadied after a week that began with a church attack and ended with a closed crossing. Related regional tensions are also covered in our reporting on Israel’s election day and on Egypt’s parliament authorising military support for Saudi Arabia, while the wider regional picture includes Saudi Arabia’s interception of Houthi missiles and drones.
What to Watch Next
What happens next will be shaped by three things the article has already set out: whether the joint security committee can establish agreed facts about the strikes, whether the Nassib crossing reopens, and whether either side takes further military action. The investigation Syria says it has opened, and the committee both countries have agreed to form, are the two channels through which those questions will first be tested.