Jordanian King Orders Hunt After Eight Killed in Karak Church Shooting
Security forces are searching for gunmen who fired during a funeral in the governorate, leading to a nationwide increase in protective measures.
By Kwame Silva ·
Jordan’s security forces are actively hunting for the individuals responsible for a deadly shooting at a Greek Orthodox church in the Karak governorate. King Abdullah directed authorities to respond with force to locate the perpetrators following the attack, which left eight people dead and forty others injured.
The incident occurred on Friday during a funeral service. The location is situated approximately 120 kilometers southwest of Amman. Gunmen opened fire for several minutes in broad daylight while the congregation was gathered. Jordanian officials labeled the event an act of extremist terrorism, though no group has yet claimed responsibility for the violence.
In the immediate aftermath, the Jordanian government declared a three-day period of national mourning. State media reported that it is too early to determine if the attackers have ties to specific organizations inside or outside the country. The US embassy in Amman confirmed that security has been intensified at shopping malls, embassies, and other key sites across the nation.
King Abdullah traveled to Karak within hours of the shooting. He vowed that the perpetrators would be punished with an iron fist. Prime Minister Jafar Hassan posted on X that the attack was a result of terrorist ideology and blind extremism, stating that society would not be allowed to follow that path.
Witnesses provided details of the chaos that followed the gunfire. Nasser al-Burqan, a lawyer who survived, told Reuters that one attacker stood about two meters away and fired a handgun at him. He later learned his son, who was also at the mass, had been shot in the leg. Al-Burqan said he saw two assailants through a window after the shooting stopped; one was masked and the other carried a handgun.
At a hospital treating the wounded, Tarek Ammarin, whose relative was injured, called the event a massacre. Bahjat al-Rushda, the mayor of Shihan village in Karak, described the attack as wicked and expressed hope that the country would remain safe. Video footage from Saturday showed police patrolling the area outside the church.
Attacks of this magnitude are rare in Jordan. Authorities in the US-allied kingdom have noted that they have foiled multiple plots in recent years by groups driven by a strict interpretation of Islam. Karak is home to a minority Christian population, and the country hosts several biblical sites that attract pilgrims from around the world.
