AMMAN, JORDAN- Jordanian forces have killed three fugitives including two who had recently escaped jail in a raid near the kingdom’s border with Saudi Arabia, authorities said on Sunday.
Security forces raided on Saturday the hideout of three wanted fugitives “near the kingdom’s southeastern border”, Public Security Directorate spokesman Amer Sartawi said in a statement.
The three suspects were killed in a firefight after they had opened fire at the security forces with automatic weapons, Sartawi said.
The men had used a stolen vehicle to travel through unpopulated “desert areas” to avoid being discovered, the statement said.
Two of the suspects had escaped from a prison days ago and the third was a brother of one of the fugitives, according to the statement.
The third man is wanted in several cases including the killing of a senior policemen during protests in Jordan’s south, it added.
Abdul Razzaq Dalabeh, deputy police chief of Maan province, was shot dead on December 15 during what authorities called “riots” in the southern town of Al-Husseiniya.
Several southern provinces including Maan were rocked late last year by strikes and protests against rising fuel prices that also led to clashes with security forces.
Days after Dalabeh’s death, a raid on in Al-Husseiniya killed the main suspect as well as three members of the security forces.
Authorities said dozens of security personnel were wounded during the unrest in Maan province.