AMMAN Ñ The United States has warned its nationals in the relatively-secure nation of Jordan to
exercise extreme caution in the wake of the assassination of an American
diplomat.
The U.S. embassy in Amman called on Americans to be vigilant until further notice in wake of the killing of Lawrence Foley. Foley
was shot dead in a hail of bullets outside his home in Amman on Monday.
It was the first assassination of a U.S. diplomat in Jordan and came in
the wake of warnings from Washington that Al Qaida agents were attempting to
abduct U.S. citizens in Jordan, Middle East Newsline reported.
Foley was a representative of the U.S. Agency for International
Development, responsible for civilian aid to the Hashemite kingdom. No
arrests have been reported.
The embassy warned U.S. nationals may be under surveillance by Islamic insurgents. There are an estimated
3,000 Americans living in Jordan, regarded as one of the safest countries in
the Middle East.
"U.S. citizens should exercise caution, be aware of their surroundings
and vary travel routes and times," the embassy said. "The level of alertness
should be particularly high during arrival at/departure from residences."
An unknown group, Shurafa Al Urdun, claimed responsibility for the
killing. In a statement by the London-based Al Quds Al Arabi daily on
Tuesday, the group cited the U.S. war in Afghanistan and said it also killed
an Israeli national in 2001 in Amman.
Foley was killed in a neighborhood chosen by the Western diplomatic
community. Over the last two years, an Israeli businessman was killed and
two Israeli diplomats were shot and injured in the Jordanian neighborhood.
"At this point, Jordanian authorities are closely cooperating with our
embassy security officials, in conducting an investigation," State
Department spokesman Richard Boucher said in Washington on Monday. "We have
enhanced security precautions throughout Amman working with the Jordanians,
and they've helped us upgrade security where Americans live and work and we
have closed the U.S. embassy."
The attack took place during a U.S.-led special forces exercise in
southern Jordan. U.S. officials said the exercise would not be affected by
the killing.
"The exercise is ongoing," Rear Adm David Cove, deputy director for
global operations at the Joint Chiefs of Staff, said. "There are U.S.
personnel in Jordan, but we won't speak about operational numbers or
tactics, techniques or procedures for those ongoing exercises."
Jordanian officials said authorities increased security around the
capital. Special forces rode throughout the capital and infantry fighting
vehicles, outfitted with machine-guns, escorted diplomatic vehicles.
"The Jordanian government is going to deal seriously with this horrible
crime," Jordanian Foreign Minister Marwan Muasher said.
