Nine dead as gunmen attack a Greek Orthodox church during a funeral in Jordan's Karak

The attack in Karak

Gunmen opened fire on a funeral service inside the Greek Orthodox Church of Saint George in the village of Hammoud, in Karak governorate in southern Jordan, on Friday, 23 October. The Public Security Directorate said the attackers entered the church grounds before firing on a funeral procession, and that they remain at large. Survivor accounts cited by adevarul.ro describe three attackers, two arriving by vehicle and a third joining them with a semi-automatic rifle. Niezalezna.pl describes pistols and a machine gun, so the weapons are not settled across the reporting. Authorities first reported seven dead and 34 injured on Friday, while some outlets put the number of wounded at about 40.

Casualties and hospital care

Health Minister Ibrahim al-Bdour said on Saturday, 24 October, that the toll had risen to nine after a second wounded person died. Europa Press quotes him saying that 27 people remain under medical care. Eight are at Prince Ali military hospital, two of them in critical condition on ventilators after surgery, while eight others were evacuated by helicopter to King Hussein Medical City. Five are at the Karak government hospital, three at the Al Bashir hospitals and three at the Italian Hospital of Karak. DW and HotNews, citing the Health Ministry, put the number still hospitalized at 25, so the sources differ on the count.

Investigation and security response

No arrests have been confirmed. The Public Security Directorate has not confirmed the detention of the cell it believes was involved, and Al Mamlaka TV reported that police operations continue while officials await information. Security forces have set up dozens of checkpoints across Karak, and some road closures put in place on Friday have been lifted, though the cordon around the church remains. Interior Minister Mazen al-Faraya described the attackers as members of a group of extremists and said security services are mobilized to find them. Prime Minister Jafar Hassan said state bodies are working to bring the perpetrators before the courts and declared three days of national mourning from Friday, with flags flown at half-mast on government buildings.

Reactions in Jordan and abroad

King Abdullah II visited the wounded in Karak and called the attack a shameful act of terror, according to Al Mamlaka TV. He ordered a review of anti-terrorism procedures and said anyone who supported or justified the attack must be severely punished. In a post on X, he said the attack would meet the harshest response. Palestinian churches were urged to ring their bells at noon on Saturday, and the Palestinian Presidential Committee for Church Affairs condemned the attack. Archbishop Elpidophoros of America called it a shameful terrorist act and wrote to Archbishop Christophoros of Kyriakoupolis.

There are no words that can describe the tragedy that all Orthodox Christians and all people of faith and goodwill around the world have experienced.

In the same letter he wrote that if one member of the Church suffers, all members suffer together. Greek President Konstantinos Tasoulas phoned King Abdullah II on Saturday afternoon to discuss the attack, and Greece declared the same three days of mourning that Jordan had announced.