Jordan Charges Lawmaker in West Bank Gun-smuggling Attempt

A Jordanian member of parliament was charged in the kingdom Tuesday over an attempt to smuggle weapons into the West Bank, his lawyer said.

If convicted, the 35-year-old lawmaker, Imad al-Adwan, faces a prison sentence of up to 15 years. According to Jordan’s official Petra news agency, “Other defendants admitted to trading and smuggling weapons, gold and e-cigarettes” in association with Adwan.

According to Israel’s Shin Bet security agency, he was detained at the Israel-administered Allenby crossing between Jordan and the West Bank on April 22, when Israeli security forces allegedly found 194 pistols and 12 rifles in his car.

In a statement, his lawyer Ali al-Mubaeedin said that the MP was charged with exporting weapons with the intention of illegal use and committing acts likely to disrupt public order and threaten the country’s security.

“Imad Adwan appeared today before the state security court and was questioned by the prosecutor following the confiscation of firearms and gold in his possession by the Israeli authorities,” said Mubaeedin.

Following Adwan’s release from detention, Ahmad Safadi, speaker of the Jordanian parliament’s lower house, told local media that the legislature had voted to strip him of immunity from prosecution.

Jordan, in 1994 became the second Arab country to recognize and sign a peace treaty with Israel after Egypt.

In recent months, a surge of violence and terror attacks has wracked the West Bank, aided by a flood of illegal weapons, including many guns smuggled from Jordan.

Since February 2022, Adwan has used his diplomatic passport 12 times to smuggle various goods, including “birds, pigeons, electronic cigarettes and gold,” the Shin Bet statement said.