Jordan Prime Minister Vows Punishment After Nine Die in Karak Church Shooting
Gunmen attacked a Greek Orthodox funeral in Hamoud on Friday, killing nine and wounding 40 before fleeing.
By Fatou Kim ·
Prime Minister Jafar Hassan pledged on Friday that Jordan would punish the perpetrators of a deadly church attack with an iron fist. King Abdullah visited the Karak governorate within hours of the shooting to inspect security measures and address the public. The royal visit followed the death of nine people and the wounding of 40 others during a funeral service.
The incident occurred at St. George's Greek Orthodox church in the town of Hamoud. Interior Minister Mazin Al Farrayeh identified the assailants as extremists, though he noted it was too early to determine if they belonged to a specific known group. No organization has claimed responsibility for the attack. Maj. Gen. Abdallah al-Maaytah, head of the Public Security Directorate, confirmed that search operations for the gunmen were still ongoing.
Video from a security camera at the church, which Reuters verified, showed three individuals firing from a pavement position. They used trees and a low wall for cover before running toward the building's entrance. Witnesses reported that the gunfire lasted for several minutes and was indiscriminate. Priest Theodoros Soueiss stated that panic took hold as people tried to find cover. Ihab Ammareen described seeing bloodied individuals collapse on the floor while others screamed.
Security officials have increased patrols at malls, foreign embassies, and other high-profile locations across the country. The US Embassy in Amman announced the heightened security measures on Saturday. Mike Waltz, the US ambassador to the United Nations, described the incident as a depraved and brutal attack on a house of worship. UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres condemned the violence, calling attacks on civilians unacceptable.
Jordan has maintained relative stability in the region, but US authorities have reported foiling multiple attempted attacks by Islamist militants in recent years. The country was also targeted by Iranian attacks earlier this year following US and Israel strikes on Iran in February. Christians remain a minority in Jordan, a nation that hosts several biblical sites attracting international pilgrims. Hani Al-Mbaydeen, a visitor at a government hospital in Karak, expressed shock at the event. He urged the state to investigate how such dark ideas enter the minds of young people.
