Syria summons Jordanian ambassador after Daraa airstrikes kill seven civilians, including three children

Syria summoned Jordan’s ambassador to Damascus on Wednesday and handed him a formal protest note over airstrikes in the southern province of Daraa that Syrian authorities say killed seven civilians, including three children and a woman.

The Syrian Foreign Ministry said Ambassador Sufian al-Qudah was summoned over strikes that hit civilian sites and also wounded several people.

Jordan said the operation targeted Islamic State positions and militants linked to a deadly attack on church mourners in the southern Jordanian province of Karak. Amman said more than 20 ISIS members were killed and a major weapons depot was destroyed.

Jordanian Foreign Minister Ayman Safadi expressed regret over the civilian deaths during a call with Syrian Foreign Minister Asaad al-Shaibani and offered condolences to the Syrian people.

Damascus has said the strikes were carried out without prior coordination and condemned them as a violation of Syrian sovereignty, while Jordan said the targets posed confirmed and imminent security threats.

The two governments have agreed to establish a joint security committee to investigate the strikes, improve intelligence and field coordination and strengthen cooperation against cross-border militant activity.

The dispute follows the Karak church attack, which killed nine people and led Jordanian authorities to trace suspects to militant networks operating across the Syrian border.