A Jordanian lawmaker has been indicted on charges that he illegally smuggled hundreds of rifles and handguns to terror groups in the Shomron through the Allenby Crossing, his lawyer said Wednesday.

Lawmaker Imad al-Adwan, whose parliamentary immunity was revoked, as promised to Israel, could be sentenced to up to 15 years in prison if convicted.

The alleged gun-running scandal that gripped headlines last month has threatened to further strain ties between Israel and its Arab neighbor to the east despite their nearly three-decade-old peace treaty.

The apparent effort by a Jordanian parliament member to sneak guns into the restive Palestinian Authority — where young Palestinians are increasingly getting their hands on rifles and opening fire at Israelis — has raised fears of Jordanian support for Palestinian militancy that undercuts the country’s moderate, pro-Western monarchy.

Al-Adwan was charged in a state security court in Amman last week, his lawyer Ali Mubaideen told The Associated Press. After being interrogated, al-Adwan, 35, was charged with four counts of illegally exporting weapons and “carrying out actions that breach security and threaten community peace,” Mubaideen added.

Israel’s Shin Bet security service has said al-Adwan successfully managed to smuggle arms, gold and other items like electronic cigarettes into the West Bank at least a dozen times since early 2022 in exchange for unspecified sums of money. He was caught on April 22 at an Israeli-controlled crossing with over 200 weapons. Israel handed him over to Jordanian authorities last month.

Al-Adwan, a member of one of Jordan’s biggest tribes, has served for the past three years as a legislator in a newly formed political party called Irada, which aims to modernize the country’s political system.

Violence in the Palestinian Authority has surged to heights unseen in some two decades. The territory has been awash with illegal weapons, including arms smuggled from Jordan.

(AP & YWN Israel Desk – Jerusalem)