Jordanian Army soldiers patrol the Syrian border. Feb. 17, 2022. (Credit: AFP)
The Jordan-Syria border has long been a transit point for drug trafficking and over the past few weeks, it has come under increased scrutiny. Smuggling operations and clashes with traffickers, which Amman accuses of being affiliated with Iran-aligned militias in Syria, have exacerbated security concerns in recent months.
While smuggling related issues along the border are nothing new, recent events have gone so far as to threaten the Kingdom’s stability. The preferred route for weapons smuggling into the West Bank runs through Jordan, and since the war, activity along the route has increased sharply.
Bordering Israel and surrounded by Syria and Iraq, Jordan has been trying to avoid a conflict spillover since Oct. 7 and has sought help from its partners and allies.
Since mid-December, shootings and raids have intensified within the country. On Dec. 18, smugglers and militants transporting drugs and weapons stormed the Jordanian border in a major operation involving up to 220 heavily armed men, who also benefited from the guise provided by the thick fog characteristic of this time of year.
“We are seeing a new style of operation, in nature and method, seeking conflict and battles with the Jordanian army to create hot spots on the borders or inside Jordanian territory,” said Amer al-Sabaileh, geopolitical expert and non-resident researcher with the Stimson Center.
According to security officials and members of the Syrian opposition, the insurgents were directly aided by militiamen linked to Hezbollah, sponsored by Tehran.
On Tuesday, a Jordanian aircraft carried out four strikes inside Syria against farms and warehouses presumed to be used by drug traffickers linked to Iran.
According to Syrian opposition media collective Suwayda 24, the strikes targeted the towns of Shaab and Arman, in the regime-controlled province of Suwayda. This was the second raid of this type in the space of a week. On Saturday, the Jordanian Army announced that it killed several smugglers attempting to cross the border from Syria.
‘External agendas’
“More than smuggling attempts, these are invasions,” said Riad Kahwaji, Director of the Dubai-based Near East and Gulf Institute for Military Analysis. “It’s unprecedented. These groups are launching attacks not only to smuggle narcotics or weapons used for petty crime but also to transport artillery rockets, guided weapons, and explosives.”
In November, the Wall Street Journal reported that the flow of arms from Iran to the West Bank — via Jordanian territory — to equip the Palestinian Islamic Jihad, increased considerably last year.
Shortly before the start of the war, an Iranian smuggling route to the West Bank via Syria and Jordan was discovered, noted the Israeli Haaretz daily.
Powerful explosives and handguns are said to have been smuggled via this route. The current scale of arms trafficking in Jordan is a new phenomenon that could be “very much linked to the war in the Gaza Strip at the moment,” said Kahwaji.
To Jordanian authorities, the culprit is obvious. “Responsibility for any militia presence lies with the Syrian state, whatever its links with it,” said Army spokesman Brigadier Mustafa al-Hiyari on Sunday.
“Behind this organized action are external agendas,” he stated, in a thinly veiled reference to the regime’s supporters.
Iran and Hezbollah rejected these allegations as a “Western plot against Syria.”
Bashar al-Assad returned to the Arab League last year and Jordan toned down its criticism of Damascus, which is considered a narco-state for its role in the production and trafficking of captagon.
After seeing first-hand the consequences of the Syrian Civil War, Jordan moved closer to the Syrian regime around 2021, and claims to have taken in 1.2 million refugees since 2011 (a figure disputed by the UN, which lists nearly 650,000 registered Syrians).
Duplicity
However, the increased smuggling activities are undermining Jordan-Syrian cooperation. Meanwhile, the Damascus regime has not implemented its promises following its reintegration into the Arab fold, and having only partial control over its territory, it exercises only limited authority in security matters.
“The Iranians and Russians exercise total control, particularly over certain parts of the south,” said Kahwaji. He noted the presence of Hezbollah in areas close to the Jordanian border.
This is not reassuring news for the Jordanian monarchy. Now in its fourth month, the war in Gaza threatens to expand, especially with the attacks of Yemen’s Houthis in the Red Sea and targeted assassinations carried out by Israel and the United States.
“The Iran-backed groups are taking advantage of the war to step up their smuggling activities and transfer arms that could be destined for insurgent groups in Jordan or the West Bank,” added Kahwaji.
With Israel’s assistance, Jordan has set up security arrangements along the border with the West Bank, to prevent smuggling from either direction.
Sabaileh believes such cooperation could also have increased in the north of the country at this time, despite the risk Jordan faces of being accused of duplicity by its population.
Amman’s official and historic position has always been pro-Palestinian, and 60 percent of the country’s total population is of Palestinian origin. Despite this, fears abound that further escalation could result in a mass influx of displaced persons into the Kingdom.
Benefiting from annual aid of around $1.5 billion from Washington, the Kingdom requested an air defense system from its ally on Oct. 31.
“The importance of Jordan as an ally of the West makes it even more crucial to meet these challenges and ensure its security,” said Sabaileh, who foresees stronger relations between the Kingdom and the US regarding border security.
This article was originally published in French n L'Orient-Le Jour. Translation by Joelle El Khoury.