Three Gunmen Kill Seven at Karak Church

Jordanian authorities reported that three gunmen attacked a funeral service at a Greek Orthodox church in Karak on Friday, killing seven people and wounding 40 others. The town is located approximately 90 kilometers south of the capital, Amman.

State television footage showed two armed men approaching the church and firing pistols before a third individual with a semiautomatic rifle joined in. Witnesses recorded shattered glass and blood on the church floor following the shooting. One mourner, Dorgham Halasa, stated that heavy gunfire erupted roughly 15 minutes after the service began. He noted that some attendees reported seeing four attackers, though security services have not confirmed that number.

The government described the incident as an act by unknown assailants. Officials said investigations are proceeding rapidly but did not specify if any shooters had been captured. The Health Ministry reported that two of the injured are in critical condition. King Abdullah II posted on X that the nation would apply the harshest penalties to those responsible for the terrorist act. He also expressed condolences to the victims' families.

Prime Minister Jafar Hassan addressed a security meeting in Karak on Friday evening. He characterized the attack as driven by terrorist ideology and blind extremism. He pledged legal action against those seeking to introduce such extremism into the region.

Karak has a minority Christian population and has experienced deadly violence previously. In 2016, gunmen ambushed police near a Crusader castle in the area, killing ten people, seven of whom were officers. Security forces ended that standoff after a prolonged confrontation.

Regional leaders reacted quickly to the news. The grand imam of Al-Azhar in Cairo called the shooting a heinous terrorist attack. Iraqi Foreign Minister Fuad Hussein spoke with his Jordanian counterpart to express solidarity. U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres labeled the attack especially heinous because it occurred during a funeral. His spokesman, Stephane Dujarric, said Guterres called for the responsible parties to be found and held to account.

The kingdom has declared a three-day period of national mourning. Security forces continue to search for the perpetrators. No official timeline was provided for the conclusion of the investigation.