‘Security measures in place amid regional threats’

AMMAN — The US embassy has issued a security message on its website for US citizens staying in Jordan, warning them from going to high-end malls because of a potential threat by extremist groups.

The threat, according to the embassy “is judged to be credible although its type and time frame remain unknown”.

A senior government official commented on the warning by saying that “countries issue such warnings all the time”, when contacted by The Jordan Times.

Minister of State for Media Affairs and Communications Mohammad Momani said that Jordan “continues to take security measures to ensure the safety and security of people, given the regional situation”. 

He stopped short of commenting on recent warnings by the Daesh terror group to attack targets in Jordan, which has stepped up a campaign against the terror organisation after its militants brutally killed captured pilot Muath Kasasbeh. 

The embassy message said that extremist groups have repeatedly “expressed interest in attacking so-called soft targets, such as malls and restaurants in Jordan”. And so security presence should be expected to increase at such establishments throughout the country, especially in Amman.