Jordanian security forces shot dead an Indian man trying to illegally cross the border into Israel last month.
According to media reports, 47-year-old Thomas Gabriel Perera, from Thumba in the southern Indian state of Kerala, had travelled to Jordan on 5 February on a tourist visa as part of a group of four people. He and one of his companions, named Edison, had reportedly been promised jobs in Israel with a monthly salary of 350,000 Indian rupees ($4,011) by another fellow Indian working in Jordan.
Having been autorickshaw drivers back in India, Perera and Edison reportedly paid that fellow Indian 210,000 rupees ($2,406) upfront and had agreed to pay a further 50,000 rupees ($573) every month once they began working in Israel.
For reasons not yet fully revealed, they resorted to attempting to cross the Jordanian-Israeli border on 10 February, which resulted in Jordan’s security forces shooting at them.
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According to the Indian Express, which cited sources from the Perera family, a letter from the Indian Embassy in Jordan explained that “Thomas and another person were trying to cross the Jordan border at Karkak district illegally. The security forces tried to stop them but they did not listen to the warning. The guards opened fire on them. One bullet hit Thomas in his head and he died on the spot. Later, his body was sent to a local hospital.”
Edison also reportedly sustained injuries, but regained consciousness days later in a medical facility. He has since faced legal proceedings over the illegal breach attempt, and was deported back to India on 28 February.
In a statement on X, the Indian Embassy said on Sunday that it learnt of the “sad demise of an Indian national in unfortunate circumstances. The Embassy is in touch with the family of the deceased and is working closely with Jordanian authorities for transportation of mortal remains of the deceased.”