Two Americans among 5 people slain by Jordanian policeman in Amman

Two U.S. police trainers were killed and two others wounded Monday when a Jordanian police officer opened fire at a training facility in Amman, the capital, U.S. and Jordanian officials said.

A South African trainer and two Jordanians also were slain at the training center in the capital’s Al-Muwaqqar district, said Jordanian government spokesman Mohammad Momani.

The gunman wounded two other U.S. citizens as well as several Jordanians before being killed by his colleagues, Jordan’s official Petra news agency reported.

News agencies reported that as many as eight people had been killed in the attack, but Jordanian authorities said the death toll including the gunman stood at six. Details about the attack remained murky.

There was no immediate official word on the motive for the slayings.

Initial reports from Jordanian authorities described the slain U.S. citizens as “soldiers.” However, a Pentagon spokesman, Capt. Jeff Davis, said later that the pair were State Department contractors, not military personnel.

“We can confirm that all U.S. military personnel in Jordan are accounted for and this did not involve a U.S. [Department of Defense] program there,” Davis said.

In Washington, President Obama said that the attacker had been dressed in military uniform and officials were taking the matter “very seriously.”

The U.S. Embassy in Amman released a statement saying that “two U.S. government employees were killed and two wounded in a shooting incident today at the Jordan International Police Training Center southeast of Amman.”

“The investigation is ongoing and it is premature to speculate on motive at this point,” the statement added.

An embassy official contacted by phone could not elaborate on the condition of the wounded Americans.

Khaberni news service identified the slain gunman as Anwar Abu Zaid. In an interview, his brother, Fadi, told the private Jordanian news service that his slain sibling was “not an extremist.”

The U.S. trainers worked alongside Jordanian police at the facility, officials said. The center regularly hosts training sessions for Arab police units, including Iraqi and Palestinian forces.

The slain Jordanians reportedly were interpreters at the facility.

The attack comes on the 10th anniversary of a triple bombing of Amman hotels by Al Qaeda militants that rocked the capital and killed more than 50 people. It was unclear whether Monday’s attack was timed to coincide with that anniversary.

The Jordanian government is a staunch ally of Washington and part of the U.S.-led coalition bombing Islamic State extremists who have gained control of huge tracts of Syria and neighboring Iraq. Jordan also has a peace treaty with neighboring Israel.

But Jordan is also a source of militant recruits who have traveled to Syria to join Islamic State and other extremist factions.

Bulos is a special correspondent. Times staff writer W.J. Hennigan in Washington contributed to this report.

Follow McDonnell on Twitter at @mcdneville for news out of the Middle East

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