JORDANIAN and Syrian forces have traded gunfire on their border.
According to a Jordanian security source, "brief" clashes broke out between the two armies in the Tal Al Sihab region after Syrian forces opened fire on some 300 refugees attempting to flee into Jordan. The Syrians had targeted Jordanian forces by mistake.
Jordanian soldiers returned fire, said the source, igniting a fierce 10-minute-long battle between the two sides.
Saudi Arabian news network Al Arabiya reported two Jordanian soldiers were injured, a claim both the source and Jordanian officials denied.
Jordanian government spokesman Smaih Maaytah denied any clashes broke out between the two sides. He said Syrian forces opened fire on refugees close to the Jordanian border, injuring several, including one child who died upon arrival at a hospital in the Jordanian border city of Ramtha.
Friday morning's incident marks the first full-scale clashes between Syria and Jordan and comes one week after Amman announced a military state of alert in the border region.
The issue of refugees has become a point of contention between Amman and Damascus, with Jordan having granted refuge to some 150,000 Syrians since the start of the conflict, including army defectors and opposition activists.
Asian Defence News
According to a Jordanian security source, "brief" clashes broke out between the two armies in the Tal Al Sihab region after Syrian forces opened fire on some 300 refugees attempting to flee into Jordan. The Syrians had targeted Jordanian forces by mistake.
Jordanian soldiers returned fire, said the source, igniting a fierce 10-minute-long battle between the two sides.
Saudi Arabian news network Al Arabiya reported two Jordanian soldiers were injured, a claim both the source and Jordanian officials denied.
Jordanian government spokesman Smaih Maaytah denied any clashes broke out between the two sides. He said Syrian forces opened fire on refugees close to the Jordanian border, injuring several, including one child who died upon arrival at a hospital in the Jordanian border city of Ramtha.
Friday morning's incident marks the first full-scale clashes between Syria and Jordan and comes one week after Amman announced a military state of alert in the border region.
The issue of refugees has become a point of contention between Amman and Damascus, with Jordan having granted refuge to some 150,000 Syrians since the start of the conflict, including army defectors and opposition activists.
Asian Defence News
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