Gunman opens fire on tourists in Jordan, killing British man

AMMAN, Jordan -- A gunman reportedly from the same region as al-Qaida in Iraq's slain leader opened fire on Western tourists at the ruins of a Roman amphitheater Monday, killing a British man and wounding six other people before being overpowered.\nThe attack in the heart of Jordan's capital came despite a heavy clampdown on security in this key U.S. ally since a string of deadly bombings at hotels last November that al-Qaida in Iraq claimed to have staged.\nPolice were trying to determine if the alleged gunman, Nabeel Ahmed Issa Jaourah, was enticed by Islamic militants or a terror group to carry out the shooting, said a Jordanian security official, who agreed to discuss the investigation only if not quoted by name.\nThe official said Jaourah, 38, is from Rusaifa, a village outside Zarqa, the hometown of Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, the leader of al-Qaida in Iraq who was killed June 7 when a U.S. warplane bombed his hideout in Iraq. Zaqra is an industrial town northeast of Amman that is a hub for extremist Muslims.\nPreliminary investigations found no link between known terror groups and Jaourah, a Jordanian of Palestinian origin who worked as a metal welder, the official said. Jaourah is believed to be an observant Muslim who once wore a beard -- traditional among some conservative Muslims -- but he was clean-shaven when he carried out the assault, the official added.\nIt was the first major terror attack in Jordan since the triple hotel bombings in the capital last November that killed 63 people, including three suicide bombers.\n"This is a cowardly terrorist attack, which we regret took place on Jordanian soil," said Interior Minister Eid al-Fayez. "This operation is considered a terrorist act unless the man is found to be deranged."\nThe gunman struck just outside the entrance to the popular amphitheater ruins in downtown Amman about 12:30 p.m., said one witness, Mohammad Jawad Ali, an Iraqi.\nThe attacker shouted "Allahu akbar," or God is great, as he ran past the tourists, firing at them from behind. Then he turned around, facing them, and continued to shoot, the security official said.\nHe said bystanders, including Iraqi refugees, helped two tourist policemen capture the assailant, who tried to flee.\nBritish Foreign Secretary Margaret Beckett said she was "extremely saddened" by the shooting. "Acts of violence such as this are as senseless as they are callous," she said in a statement.\nThe U.S. Embassy said it extended "deepest condolences" to the victims. "We have the utmost confidence in the Jordanian security forces," it added.\nThe dead man was identified only as a 30-year-old British man. Al-Fayez said the wounded included two British women, a Dutch man, an Australian woman, a woman from New Zealand and a Jordanian tourist police officer.\nHealth Minister Saeed Darwazeh said the Dutch man underwent surgery to repair his liver. He said the one of the two British women was in intensive care but did not elaborate on her condition. He said the New Zealander was expected to undergo surgery to remove a bullet.\nThe rest were in stable condition, he said.\nMinister of Tourism Munir Nassar said the six tourists arrived in Jordan on Sunday for a five-day sightseeing tour of the kingdom.\nHe predicted the attack would have little effect on Jordan's tourism industry, calling terrorism a global phenomenon. "The whole world is a victim of terrorism and crime," he said.\nThe majority of the victims in last November's attacks at hotels were Jordanian Muslim women and children. But there have been attacks on foreigners in Jordan in recent years, and authorities say they have foiled a number of other terror plots.\nAfter the November bombings, authorities tightened security around all tourist attractions and hotels, adding more metal detectors and police patrols.\nMonday's attack seems to have succeeded because the gunman shot the tourists just outside the amphitheater's entrance -- an area frequented by low-income and unemployed Jordanians and Iraqis in a district populated by conservative Muslims.\nThe amphitheater, built by the Romans in A.D. 169-77, rises out of one of Amman's hillsides. It seats 6,000 people and is used for musical and other performances.\n--Associated Press writers Dale Gavlak and Shafika Mattar contributed to this report.