Jordan’s Minister of Interior, Mazen al-Faraya, announced the closure of the Jaber border crossing with Syria (the Nassib crossing on the Syrian side) due to the security conditions surrounding southern Syria, following the control of opposition factions over the crossing from the Syrian side.
According to the decision reported by the Jordan News Agency (Petra) today, Friday, December 6, Jordanian citizens and Jordanian trucks will be permitted to return to Jordanian territory, while traffic for those departing to Syrian territory will be prohibited.
The Jordanian Interior Minister stated that Jordan is monitoring the ongoing developments in Syria, and the armed forces continue to secure the borders.
This development comes at a time when the province of Daraa witnessed attacks targeting security and military sites of the Syrian regime coinciding with the announcement of opposition factions gaining full control over the city of Hama, in central Syria.
A reporter for Enab Baladi in Daraa reported that regime forces withdrew from the city of Inkhel in the western province after scattered strikes on their military checkpoints and positions throughout the province.
On Thursday, the city of Nawa, north of Daraa, witnessed clashes around the Military Security detachment between local fighters and elements of the detachment. The attackers used light and medium weapons and projectiles, followed by regime artillery shelling of the city from Tal al-Jabia, according to the reporter.
The local website Daraa 24 indicated that two military checkpoints belonging to the regime withdrew from the village of al-Jubailiya in western Daraa towards the military Tal al-Jabia northwest of Nawa.
The report added that clashes also erupted at a checkpoint belonging to Air Intelligence in the village of al-Jubailiya in western Daraa, coinciding with shelling originating from Brigade 61 in the vicinity of the clashes.
According to three intersecting sources close to the military factions in Daraa (the Eighth Brigade, Central Committees), the military groups have fears of a halt in military operations, but they may engage in operations against regime forces from the southern front if the opposition’s advance reaches predetermined locations.
The sources suggested that military operations could begin from regime security and military checkpoints in the streets of Daraa, reaching regime forces’ centers throughout the province in the coming days if the factions’ advance from the north continues.
In recent days, demonstrations have taken place in several areas of Daraa province in support of the “Deterrence of Aggression” operation launched by opposition factions against regime forces in northwestern Syria, with one of them coming under fire from regime forces.