Israel to hold large-scale military drill near Jordan border

The Israeli army said Sunday it will launch a large-scale military exercise in the Red Sea city of Eilat and the Arava Valley along the Jordanian border on Monday to simulate a surprise attack.

In a statement, the army said the exercise will be led by its 80th Division, adding that increased movement of security forces, aircraft and naval vessels will be seen in the area starting Sunday.

The forces will train for "a range of scenarios," including a surprise attack and infiltration into Israeli territory by air, sea and land, it said.

The army did not specify how long the exercise would last, saying only that drills would take place "over the coming days."

It said the exercise is aimed at testing the defense of Israeli communities near the Jordanian border and the Eilat area, improving troop readiness and using aerial and naval capabilities to strengthen the defense of the region.

The army said the exercise is part of "an ongoing process to strengthen readiness and competence and examine lessons learned from combat and security incidents in recent years."

The drill comes a week after the Israeli army conducted an exercise in the occupied Syrian Golan Heights that it said was aimed at improving readiness for "surprise and complex attacks."

Warnings over possible infiltrations across Israel's eastern border have increased in recent months.

In June, Israeli military sources said an attempted maritime infiltration into Eilat's hotel area had been thwarted.

According to Israel's private Channel 15 at the time, the navy spotted a person on a jet ski approaching the hotel area from the direction of the Jordanian border. Israeli forces fired warning shots and later opened fire toward the person after they failed to stop, before the individual returned to the direction from which they had come.

Jordan did not comment on the Israeli account.