Several Jordanian troops killed as car bomb explodes on Syrian borderJuly 6, 2016 - 16:18 AMT PanARMENIAN.Net - A car bomb exploded on the Syrian-Jordanian border early on Tuesday, July 5 the Jordanian military said, killing and wounding several Jordanian border guards in an attack that raised new questions about the pro-Western kingdom's stability, the Associated Press reports. The military said the blast went off at about 5:30 a.m., close to a makeshift tent encampment where tens of thousands of Syrian refugees are stranded, awaiting entry to Jordan. The camp, known as Ruqban, is one of two that have sprung up along an earthen barrier, or berm, which runs along the border in a remote desert area. A booby-trapped car exploded at the berm, "killing and wounding a number of border guards," the military said in a statement. It said several other "hostile" vehicles were destroyed, but did not give further details. No militant group immediately claimed responsibility for the attack. The extremist group Islamic State controls large areas in neighboring Syria and Iraq, and Jordan has fortified border defenses to prevent attacks and infiltration attempts. Jordan has also widened a crackdown on IS sympathizers at home, jailing hundreds in the past two years for promoting the group's ideas on social media. The kingdom is a member of the U.S.-led international military coalition against IS. Top stories Authorities said a total of 192 Azerbaijani troops were killed and 511 were wounded during Azerbaijan’s offensive. In 2023, the Azerbaijani government will increase the country’s defense budget by more than 1.1 billion manats ($650 million). The bill, published on Monday, is designed to "eliminate the shortcomings of an unreasonably broad interpretation of the key concept of "compatriot". The earthquake caused a temporary blackout, damaged many buildings and closed a number of rural roads. Partner news | The Power of One Dram to benefit Road of Life charity The companies inform that the May beneficiary of The Power of One Dram is the “Road of Life” charitable organization. Ucom General Director gives lecture at French University in Armenia The General Director of Ucom Ralph Yirikian delivered a lecture at the French University of Armenia. Kazakhstan welcomes Yerevan, Baku’s agreement to meet in Almaty Kassym-Jomart Tokayev has welcomed the agreement of Baku and Yerevan to hold negotiations in Almaty. Armenia offers to temporarily host, preserve Gaza manuscripts The Armenian Foreign Minister has said Yerevan is ready to help preserve manuscripts from the conflict zone in Gaza. |