On July 23, an Israeli security guard shot and killed two Jordanians in the Israeli Embassy compound in Amman. In the aftermath of this incident, tensions between Israel and Jordan have spiked, leading to perhaps the most serious bilateral crisis since 1997, when Israel attempted to assassinate former Hamas leader Khaled Meshal in the kingdom.
Details of the shooting remain unclear, but it appears that an argument over payment led a 17-year old Jordanian furniture assembler to try and stab the Israeli guard with a screwdriver. Responding to the attack, the guard opened fire, killing the assailant and an innocent bystander.
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