Jafer case with appeal court as video shows what happened

AMMAN — Attorney General Hazem Al Majali on Monday handed over to a military court of appeal the file of the case of Jafer, which has seen three American soldiers killed, the perpetrator convicted and his tribe taking to the streets in protest. 

Meanwhile, the army issued a statement with the details of the case, while a video of the incident was posted by a news website affiliated with the military.

The developments came as the convict’s tribe, the Huwaitat, continued to call for the release of their son, reportedly claiming he was innocent and that the verdict was politically driven. 

The military court previously handed down a life sentence to Maarek Sami Tawayha, a Jordanian soldier, for the killing of three US officers outside the King Faisal Airbase in Jafer, 300km south of Amman, in November 2016, the Jordan News Agency, Petra, reported.

The three US servicemen, killed on November 4, 2016, were from the 5th Special Forces Group (Airborne), located at Fort Campbell, Kentucky.

The prosecutor had previously requested the file of the case from the military court to be sent to the Military Court of Appeal, since the decision against the soldier was valid and appealable by law.

Tawayha previously denied charges of manslaughter, harming the reputation of the Jordan Armed Forces-Arab Army and disobeying military orders and instructions.

The Huwaitat tribe on Friday held a “conference” to discuss the life sentence. 

Later in the day, an official source from the Jordan Armed Forces-Arab Army said that Sergeant Tawayha did violate the army rules applied at the entrances of military posts.

The statement, issued simultaneously with the video that was posted by Hala FM Radio’s website, said that Tawayha was not in a self-defence position, had not received orders to use force under that situation and was not threatened by any party.

The soldier was the person who initiated the shooting despite the victims’ commitment to the regulations that allowed them to enter and despite his knowledge of the time they leave and return to the base as part of his duty, according to Petra.

The sources added that the military tribunal that saw the case was constructed according to Jordanian law, “which had been applied in dozens of similar cases” and its ruling also came in line with the law, supported by evidence, in addition to his confession to committing the crime.

The source added that the Jordan Armed Forces-Arab Army will remain the protector of Jordan and its stability.

The video in question showed the vehicles used by the US soldier stop at the entrance of the base for identity checks and the guard open the gate for them to enter, before the shooting began. 

Later, Tawayha, appeared in the scene shooting at the soldiers with an M16 rifle and kept firing at them although they tried to show that they were friendly by raising their hands in the air. A fourth US soldier was able to bring the attacker under control without shooting at him after the latter fell down.  

The video went viral over the Internet, recording more than 200,000 views in a couple of hours on Hala.jo alone. The video can be watched on The Jordan Times’ YouTube channel and Facebook page.