Israel has for months been pressuring Jordan to establish a fully sealed border, similar to the Kerem Shalom cargo crossing with Gaza. While Jordan announced that they were interested in doing so, the plan never moved forward. Despite continued pressure from Israel, the decision was ultimately made to drop the request to close the cargo terminal.
Both sides are working closely and in coordination to prevent terror attacks like the one that occurred on Sunday in which Yuri Birnbaum, Yohanan Shchori, and Adrian Marcelo Podsmeser were murdered.
Jordan’s aid to Gaza, which is sent at least four times a week, is very important to Jordan's King Abdullah. Despite its economic struggles, Jordan continues to provide assistance to Gaza, recently even setting up a field hospital in the southern part of the Strip. Israel is aware of Jordan’s interests and helps facilitate the transfer of aid to Gaza.
Some of the trucks crossing the Allenby Bridge originate from Jordanian medical centers, carrying supplies like medicine and equipment. Often, Jordanian doctors and nurses travel in these trucks to replace staff at two Jordanian-run hospitals in Gaza. These trucks undergo double inspections before continuing into Gaza.
A senior Jordanian security official told Ynet after the attack: "This is very serious. We take the event seriously, and I fear even worse is yet to come. We will tighten our inspections."
Goods trucks destined for the West Bank and Israel undergo triple inspections: first, a thorough check at the Jordanian terminal, followed by a less rigorous inspection where local staff typically just glance at the driver’s cabin and wave them through. The driver then reaches the Israeli cargo terminal, where Israeli security opens the gate, confirms the truck was inspected by Jordanian authorities, and conducts another round of checks.
It’s important to note that every driver arriving at the Allenby Bridge truck terminal must have a transit permit. Without approval from Jordanian authorities, there’s no chance of crossing the Israeli side of the bridge. These procedures have been in place for decades, ever since the peace agreement between Israel and Jordan was signed in 1994. Only authorized personnel and truck drivers with special permits are allowed to enter the cargo terminal.
Jordanian security forces cooperate with their Israeli counterparts, and this coordination intensified after Jordanian parliament member Imad al-Adwan was arrested in April for attempting to smuggle a large quantity of weapons, military equipment and gold. Despite the sensitive relations between the two countries, Israel opted to release him to Jordan, where he was sentenced to a lengthy prison term.
Additionally, trucks crossing from Jordan to Gaza via Allenby must pass through the Kerem Shalom crossing into Gaza. Meanwhile, trucks headed to the West Bank or Israel offload their cargo "back-to-back" onto Israeli or Palestinian trucks.
Even after the attack, carried out by Jordanian citizen Maher Jazi, Israeli officials reiterated their commitment to security cooperation with Jordan. However, since the start of the war in Gaza, this cooperation has become more "routine," with limited communication between the two sides. At the time of the attack, Jordan’s Queen Rania was speaking at a conference in Italy, once again placing the primary blame for the war in Gaza on Israel.