The Jordanian authorities have foiled a plot by ISIS to carry out terrorist attacks in the kingdom, the Jordanian newspaper Al-Ra’i reported on Monday.
Five members of the terrorist cell were arrested last July, according to a charge sheet presented to the State Security Court in Amman, the newspaper said.
According to the report, the suspects were planning to attack the guards stationed outside the home of a former Jordanian prime minister and seize their weapons.
At the beginning of their trial on Sunday, the suspects pleaded not guilty, the newspaper said.
The suspects are accused of conspiring to carry out terrorist attacks, including shooting at security patrols and kidnapping a Jordanian intelligence officer.
One of the suspects, according to the charge sheet, is a Syrian national living in Jordan known as an ISIS supporter.
At the beginning of this year, three of the other suspects, also known as ISIS supporters, attempted to infiltrate the border from Jordan into Syria to fight alongside the terrorist group. The attempt, however, failed due to the large presence of the Jordanian army along the border, the charge sheet said, according to the newspaper.
During meetings in Jordan, the suspects reportedly pledged allegiance to ISIS leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi and formed a cell with the purpose of purchasing weapons to launch terrorist attacks in the kingdom. The cell planned, among other things, to kidnap a Jordanian intelligence officer, kill him and burn his body.
During raids on the homes of the suspects last July, the Jordanian security authorities seized weapons and drugs, the newspaper said.