AMMAN, Jordan — The southern Syrian governorate of Daraa has become a security issue for Jordan as much as it is an existential challenge to the Damascus regime. In recent weeks, anti-Syrian regime rebels have tightened their grip over most of its territory. Recently, Syrian President Bashar al-Assad told a visiting Jordanian delegation, “Daraa has become a Jordanian problem.”

In response, Jordan government spokesman Mohammad Moumani told a local newspaper that Amman viewed Assad’s comments positively and, “Daraa was a Jordanian–Syrian problem.”

News reports spoke of military advances by the Free Syrian Army (FSA) in various towns in the governorate, including its capital city Daraa, which is located a few kilometers from the Jordanian-Syrian border. The Syrian uprising broke out in Daraa in March 2011 and, through its borders with Jordan, hundreds of thousands of Syrians crossed seeking refuge. Jordan now hosts no less than 600,000 Syrians, including 120,000 refugees in the Zaatari camp. Aside from the economic burden of hosting the refugees — estimated at billions of dollars — Jordan is also worried about the security risk these refugees pose.     

Syria had accused Jordan of facilitating the passage of fighters and weapons into its territory through Daraa — accusations which Amman has consistently denied. In fact, Jordan has tried a number of Jordanians on charges of attempting to cross the Syrian border illegally. Most of those who managed to cross belong to the jihadist Salafist movement, a small group that is active mainly in the governorates of Maan and Zerqa. The group never hid the fact that it had dispatched fighters to join Jabhat al-Nusra, a rebel coalition affiliated with al-Qaeda.