DAMASCUS: Vehicles hit by Jordanian airstrikes on the border on Wednesday did not belong to the Syrian Army, Syrian state media claimed, citing a military source.
“No military or armored vehicles belonging to the Syrian Army moved toward the Jordanian border, and so what was targeted by the Jordanian air force does not belong to the Syrian Army,” state television said in a breaking news alert.
The statement came after Jordan’s Army said air force fighter jets had destroyed a number of combat vehicles as they tried to enter the kingdom on Wednesday morning.
“Royal air force jets fighters today at 10:30 a.m. (0730 GMT) destroyed a number of vehicles that attempted to cross into Jordan from Syria,” the Jordanian army said in a statement.
“The camouflaged vehicles tried to enter from an area with rugged terrain.
“The fighter jets fired warning shots, but they were ignored, prompting them to destroy the vehicles. The army will not tolerate such actions,” said the statement.
A Jordanian security source said the targets appeared to have been Syrian rebels with machine guns mounted on civilian vehicles who were seeking refuge from fighting with government forces in southern Syria.
Photos taken from the air that appeared on several Jordanian news websites showed at least one civilian Chevrolet pickup damaged and another similar vehicle on fire in an unspecified desolate desert area.
No bodies appeared in the photos that a security source said had been released to the outlets by the military.
There was no identification on the vehicles. Such pickup are often used by smugglers who operate in the border area.
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