The Australian, Canadian and British embassies in Jordan have closed for security reasons "until further notice", warning of a new threat of attacks on Western targets in the kingdom.
Source:
SBS
9 Jan 2006 - 12:00 AM  UPDATED 22 Aug 2013 - 12:18 PM

The Australian and Canadian embassies followed Britain on Sunday in announcing the closure of their missions in Amman.

The move comes two months after bomb attacks claimed by al-Qaeda on three luxury hotels in Amman killed 60 people and three bombers.

Australia warned travellers in a statement of the threat of new attacks on Western targets in the kingdom, a key US ally regarded as one of the most stable countries in the Middle East.

"Reports suggest terrorists may be in the final stages of planning attacks against Westerners and places frequented by Westerners in Jordan," the embassy said.

"The Australian embassy in Jordan will be closed until further notice due to the security situation."

An official from the Canadian embassy in Jordan told news service AFP its embassy would remain closed "until further notice" due to security reasons.

Sources close to the embassies said the British mission had received a threatening email on its internet site that it had handed to the Jordanian authorities.

No direct threats were received by the Australian or Canadian embassies, the sources said.

Jordanian government spokesman Nasser Jawdeh said the kingdom "is confident in the capacities of its security services which have studied the threat and evaluated it".

"The security services believe that that does not necessitate the closure of embassies, nevertheless we take any threat seriously and that's why we have reinforced security around these embassies," he said.

But a Foreign Minstry spokesman, quoted by official news agency Petra criticised the closures.

"The government believes the closure of the British embassy, which was followed by the closure of the Canadian and Australian embassies, are completely unjustified, and there is no real motive that warrants such closure," the spokesman said.

"The concerned government authorities have expressed readiness to ensure all security precautions needed by the British embassy or any other diplomatic mission accredited to Jordan, but the British embassy went ahead with the closure procedures,” the Foreign Ministry spokesman said.

The November 9 attacks were claimed by the al-Qaeda in Iraq group of Jordanian-born Islamist Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, who has threatened new attacks on his homeland.

In August, a Jordanian soldier was killed in a rocket attack in the southern port city of Aqaba, also blamed on Zarqawi's group.

He already faces a death sentence in Jordan over the 2002 murder of a US diplomat and is the most wanted man in Iraq with a US$25 million (A$33.5 million) US bounty for his death or capture.

Jordan's state security court on December 18 handed him a second death penalty in absentia for planning to blow up a border crossing with Iraq.

The Australian embassy referred to a statement by Zarqawi, saying he had suggested: "Al-Qaeda's targets in Jordan might include a number of places frequented by foreigners, including tourist hotels, embassies and consulates."

Zarqawi, in an audiotape attributed to him posted on the internet in November, warned of more attacks if Amman did not meet his demands.

The voice on the tape demanded the departure of British and US troops, the closure of the US and Israeli embassies, and an end to training in Jordan for Iraq's fledgling security forces.

Zarqawi, once described as a "thug" by King Abdullah II, was released from jail in 1999 as part of a royal pardon when he took office after the death of his father King Hussein.