


Israeli authorities abruptly closed the Allenby Crossing between Jordan and the West Bank on Sunday, forcing travelers to turn back after Jordan had briefly reopened the bridge in the wake of a deadly terror attack three days earlier.
Israel initially closed the bridge on Friday, a day after a Jordanian truck driver carrying Gaza-bound humanitarian aid opened fire and killed two Israeli military personnel there. Jordan condemned the attack and said it had launched an investigation that identified the assailant, whom it described as “a civilian who had been working for three months as a driver delivering aid to Gaza.”
The closure has meant that trucks are unable to transport aid between Jordan and Gaza, though supplies continue to reach the enclave from other places. Some 7 percent of all aid to the Strip, over 144,000 tons, has crossed via Allenby since the beginning of the war nearly two years ago.
Allenby, the only passageway between Jordan and the West Bank, is primarily used by Palestinians in the West Bank to travel abroad without passing through Israel.
On Saturday, Jordanian authorities had announced that the bridge would reopen to foot traffic but not to cargo. That appeared to be the case on Sunday morning, as Jordanian state broadcaster Al-Mamlaka reported heavy traffic in both directions starting early in the day.
But hours later, Israel’s Airports Authority, which oversees the crossing’s opening, said it would remain closed. Israel said the closure was being enforced in coordination with Jordanian and Palestinian authorities.
Reached by The Times of Israel on Sunday afternoon, the IAA said it did not know when the crossing would open, which it described as a day-to-day decision.
It is likewise unclear whether the bridge will be open on the upcoming Jewish holiday of Rosh Hashanah on Tuesday and Wednesday. The regular schedule would have seen the crossing open for part of each day.
On Saturday, IDF officials said the military would be bolstering its West Bank division with eight additional companies ahead of the holiday. After their deployment tomorrow, the Judea and Samaria Division will be staffed by the equivalent of 23 battalions.
The additional forces will remain in the West Bank until after the Jewish holiday season ends in mid-October.
The other two crossings between Israel and Jordan were also partially or fully closed after the attack. On Friday, IDF Chief of Staff Eyal Zamir said the military would learn lessons from the attack, while praising Israeli security coordination with Jordan.
“This is a serious and difficult incident. We will thoroughly investigate it and draw lessons from it,” Zamir said during a visit to the border alongside senior officers, adding: “We must remember that the strategic-security cooperation with Jordan contributes greatly to the IDF and must be preserved.”