Two gendarmes shot by unidentified gunmen in Maan

AMMAN — Two Gendarmerie officers were shot and injured in Maan late Sunday night, official sources said.

The two officers were part of a patrol that was guarding a street in the city, some 220km south of Amman, when unidentified individuals approached them and opened fire, a source said.

“One of the two Gendarmerie officers was seriously injured and both were transported to a military hospital,” the source said.

A Maan resident told The Jordan Times that “these kinds of shootings have become a daily occurrence in our city.”

“Every day for the past week after 9pm we have been hearing gunshots fired in the streets between residents and police,” the resident said on condition of anonymity.

“People here were hopeful that this would stop during the holy month of Ramadan, but unfortunately it did not,” he added.

Meanwhile, a woman, who was critically injured last week during a police raid on her house in Maan that resulted in the death of her husband, was recovering, a second source said.

The woman was shot in the chest when Gendarmerie forces stormed her house to arrest a wanted person on June 23.

Her husband was killed and the wanted suspect was injured, but managed to evade capture.

“The woman remains hospitalised but her condition has improved,” the second source said, adding that the injured suspect remains at large.

Three gendarmes were injured during last week’s operation.

Public Security Department Spokesperson Maj. Amer Sartawi was unavailable to comment on the incident.

Over the past few months, several instances of unrest have been recorded in Maan as security forces conducted raids against wanted suspects.

In a reaction to the latest incidents in the southern city, the National Centre for Human Rights (NCHR) said on Monday that Maan residents have the right to protest and take part in peaceful demonstrations and it is the duty of the state to listen carefully to what they are asking for and meet the demands that can be implemented.  

The centre said a limited number of residents and security bodies have committed violations in Maan on more than one occasion, the Jordan News Agency, Petra, reported. 

The use of excessive force and resorting to raids that instigate fear among peaceful citizens is a violation of the law and so is hiding or providing shelter to wanted people, the NCHR said.

Security bodies should resort to more effective solutions that are less provocative and frightening to residents, the NCHR added.

Some groups, including political parties, are attempting to exploit the situation in Maan, the centre said, noting that they should refrain from using community problems in Maan to serve personal interests.  

*Al Rai’s Haroun Al Khattab contributed to this report