Israel shut the sole crossing between the occupied West Bank and Jordan on Friday, after a driver carrying Gaza aid from the kingdom shot and killed two members of the Israeli military.
The Israeli Airports Authority, which operates the Allenby Bridge crossing, announced that it would be closed until further notice. The two crossings between Israel and Jordan were also affected after Thursday's shooting, with the Jordan River crossing in the north shut and the Rabin crossing in the south open only for workers.
No group has yet claimed responsibility for the attack at Allenby Bridge, which is a key trade route between Jordan and Israel and the only gateway for more than three million Palestinians in the West Bank to reach Jordan and the wider world. Israel said the attacker was a Jordanian aid lorry driver.
The Israeli military described the Allenby Bridge incident as a "terrorist attack". Jordan's Foreign Ministry condemned the attack, saying it harmed the "interests of the kingdom” and its ability to deliver aid.
Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu requested during a cabinet meeting on Thursday that new security protocols be introduced for aid lorries travelling from Jordan, Israeli media reported on Friday.
Growing frustration
Israel has faced global condemnation for its devastating assault on Gaza. The war in the enclave is expected to dominate the agenda of the 80th UN General Assembly next week.
A French-Saudi conference on the two-state solution will be held on Monday and is expected to result in countries including France and the UK formalising their recognition of Palestinian statehood. Last week, 142 countries in the UN General Assembly endorsed a French and Saudi roadmap for Palestinian statehood, despite Israeli and US objections.
On Thursday, the US vetoed a UN Security Council resolution that demanded an “immediate, unconditional and permanent ceasefire” in Gaza and unrestricted humanitarian access. The move emphasised Washington’s continued backing of Israel despite growing international calls to end the conflict.
It was the sixth draft resolution on the Gaza war to be vetoed by the US since the conflict started in October 2023.
But sentiment is shifting among some figures in Washington. A group of US senators on Thursday introduced the first Senate resolution to call for the recognition of a Palestinian state, signalling growing support for Palestine nearly two years into Israel’s war.
The Democratic-led measure is unlikely to pass the chamber where President Donald Trump’s Republicans have a 53-47 majority. Mr Trump said on Thursday that he disagreed with British Prime Minister Keir Starmer over whether to recognise a Palestinian state and no Republicans have joined efforts to do so.
