Jordan Times
Tuesday, September 5, 2006
Amman shooting ‘sole
act’ — gov’t
Downtown gunman opens fire on tourists, kills British man, injures
6, including policeman
By Rana Husseini and Khalid Neimat
AMMAN — The government said investigations
revealed that no armed group was behind a lone gunman’s attack on a group of
tourists in downtown Amman, where a British man was killed and six others,
including a policeman, were injured.
“Investigations showed that the criminal attack was a sole act carried out by
38-year-old Jordanian Nabil Ahmad Issa Jaaoura, who had no ties to any armed
groups or suspicious links with other groups inside or outside Jordan,”
Government Spokesperson Nasser Judeh was quoted by the Jordan News Agency,
Petra, as saying.
“This was reassuring,” Judeh said.
Zarqa resident Jaaoura, father of five, struck just outside the entrance to the
Roman Amphitheatre in downtown Amman around 12:45pm, eyewitnesses and officials
said.
Wielding a gun, Jaaoura ran towards the tourists spraying bullets directly at
them from behind, eyewitnesses said, adding that he then turned around, facing
them, and continued to shoot.
Bystanders helped a tourist policeman, who was shot twice by Jaaoura in the
stomach and leg, capture the assailant, Interior Minister Eid Fayez told
reporters.
Fayez said two British women, a Dutch man, an Australian woman and a New
Zealander woman were injured.
Health Minister Saeed Darwazeh said Dutch Peter Johnson, 23, underwent an
operation to repair his liver pierced by a bullet. He said one of the two
British women was in intensive care, but did not elaborate on her condition. He
said the New Zealander was expected to undergo surgery to remove a bullet.
The rest were in stable condition, he added.
Prime Minister Marouf Bakhit, Fayez, Judeh and other officials condemned the
attack.
“We have confidence in our security forces, and the government will exert all
possible efforts to maintain security for our citizens and guests,” the premier
said after visiting the injured tourists at the Bashir Hospital.
Judeh conveyed King Abdullah’s condolences and deepest sympathy to the victims.
British Foreign Secretary Margaret Beckett said she was “extremely saddened” to
learn of the shooting. “Acts of violence such as this are as senseless as they
are callous,” Beckett said in a statement. According to the British embassy’s
website, Beckett visited the injured tourists during a stopover in Amman.
The US embassy, meanwhile, said it extended “deepest condolences to the victims
of this attack”. “We have the utmost confidence in the Jordanian security
forces,” the embassy said, according to the Associated Press.