Jordan's army said Tuesday the kingdom's border with Syria would remain closed, even as tens of thousands of Syrians flee a government offensive towards the frontier.
The commander of the kingdom's northern military region, General Khaled al-Massaid, told AFP that authorities feared the presence of "infiltrators among the displaced".
Around 95,000 Syrians have arrived in the border region "as a result of the latest military operations", he said.
regime troops backed by Russian airpower launched an offensive on June 19 to recapture the country's southern Daraa region along the border with Jordan.
"The borders are closed and the army is being very cautious with the displaced, fearing the presence of... infiltrators with weapons and disguised as women," said the general.
The United Nations said Monday the number of Syrians displaced by the onslaught had already exceeded 270,000, with 70,000 people seeking shelter along the border.
Massaid said 86 trucks had crossed the frontier over the past three days to deliver food and drinking water to the displaced.
Jordan's army has been distributing humanitarian aid and providing medical treatment at three points along the border, he said.
Earlier on Tuesday, UN High Commissioner for Human Rights spokeswoman Liz Throssel urged Jordan to open its border to the "thousands of refugees stranded without adequate shelter".
"We urge all parties to the conflict to protect civilians in southwestern Syria, and to protect those attempting to flee," she said.
Jordan said on June 24 that it would be unable to host a new wave of Syrian refugees and that its northern border would remain closed.
Some 650,000 Syrian refugees have registered with the United Nations in Jordan since fleeing their country's seven-year war, which started with anti-government protests in 2011.
Amman estimates the actual number is closer to 1.3 million people and says it has already spent more than $10 billion hosting them.
On Sunday, a military media unit run by the regime's ally Hezbollah reported that rebels in Bosra al-Sham had agreed to settle with the regime.
The rebels had started handing over heavy weapons in preparation for the army to enter, it reported.
Ibrahim Al Jbawi, spokesman for rebels' Central Operation Room, told Zaman al-Wasl that the talks were failed on Saturday because the Russian sought dictations and not negotiations.
The Crisis Management Team, an emergency group represents key rebel factions in Daraa, has withdrawn from the negotiation committee over the 'humiliating surrender deal' offered by Russia.
The group urged all rebel factions to merge efforts in the popular resistance and to not accept any deal not recognizing the Sacrifices of the Syrian people.
Since June 19, Russia-backed regime forces have ramped up bombardment against opposition fighters in southern Syria as Damascus pushes to retake the area.
The region borders Jordan and the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights and is considered to be the cradle of the uprising against President Bashar Assad seven years ago that sparked the civil war.
The regime has chipped away at rebel-held territory in Deraa since the escalation began almost two weeks ago.
Most fronts were quiet Sunday with the exception of areas near Tafas in Deraa's northwest hit by regime air strikes, the Observatory said.
Clashes between rebels and regime forces in the same area killed four opposition fighters, it said.
Russia is seeking the rebel handover of heavy and medium-sized weapons, and the deployment of Russian military police and Syrian police into towns retaken by government forces, Abdel-Rahman said.
Damascus and Moscow are pushing for a deal that would see regime forces take over the Naseeb border crossing with Jordan and deploy along the frontier with the Golan Heights, he said.
An AFP correspondent outside Deraa city - part of which is held by rebels - said Saturday night had been quiet, with only intermittent bombardment.
After retaking control of eight towns under Russia-mediated deals on Saturday, Assad's regime now controls more than half of Deraa province, up from just 30 percent before the escalation, according to the Observatory.
State news agency SANA said Sunday the national flag had been hoisted in one of these towns, Dael, while Syrian state television showed images of people celebrating.
Regime forces have retaken large parts of the country lost to rebels since Russia intervened on its behalf in 2015.
The conflict has killed more than 470,000 people and displaced millions since it started in 2011. (With Agencies
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