Israeli Intelligence Officials Conduct Secret Visit to Jordan

Israeli public broadcaster Kan 11 reported on Saturday evening that senior Israeli intelligence officials conducted a secret visit to Jordan in recent days. The purpose of the visit was to express concerns to Jordanian leadership regarding alleged “potential security and regional implications that could threaten stability.”

The visit aimed to warn Jordanian authorities about a scenario similar to the events in Syria, amid high-level Israeli deliberations on the potential regional and border stability consequences of such a scenario.

According to the Israeli broadcaster, the delegation included Ronen Bar, head of Israel’s internal security agency (Shin Bet), and Shlomi Binder, the recently appointed head of the Military Intelligence Directorate (Aman).

Additionally, the Israeli news site Walla reported that on Friday, the Shin Bet chief and senior Israeli military officers met with Ahmad Husni, the director of Jordan’s General Intelligence Directorate, as well as senior Jordanian military officials.

Discussions reportedly covered developments in Syria and relations with Syrian opposition groups that had formed a transitional government. The talks also addressed “the smuggling of weapons by Iran through Jordanian territory to armed groups in the occupied West Bank.”

The Israeli public broadcaster noted Israeli concerns that the success of the Syrian opposition in toppling Bashar al-Assad’s regime could “embolden ‘extremist elements’ in Jordan.” This, they claimed, might destabilize King Abdullah II’s government.

The report stated that these concerns prompted Shin Bet chief Ronen Bar and Military Intelligence head Shlomi Binder to visit Jordan. According to the report, the Israeli officials expressed fears of Jordan facing a situation akin to Syria’s collapse.

High-level discussions on this matter were held in Israel, including at the Security Cabinet (kabinett), where political and security leaders debated the possibility of “the Syrian scenario repeating itself in Jordan.”

Israeli officials warned that “such a development could have direct repercussions for Israel, which shares its longest land border with Jordan.” The report added that Arab diplomats share Israel’s concerns about potential instability in Jordan.

The channel noted that further details about the visit and its outcomes remain undisclosed. Neither side has issued an official statement about the visit, which comes amid escalating regional tensions and criticism of Israeli policies in the broader Middle East.