Jordan Interior Minister Says Extremists Killed Seven at Karak Church

Jordanian security forces have launched a manhunt for three gunmen who killed at least seven people during a funeral in the southern Karak governorate on Friday. The attack occurred in the village of Hammoud, a location noted for its Christian population within the majority Sunni Muslim kingdom.

Interior Minister Mazen Al-Faraya confirmed the death toll and reported that 34 additional individuals sustained injuries. He attributed the violence to a group of extremists in a statement released at a press conference. The Public Security Directorate detailed that the assailants exited a vehicle to storm the compound of a Greek Orthodox church. They began firing during the funeral procession and advanced toward the entrance.

Footage from the state broadcaster Al-Mamlaka showed the three attackers in casual clothing. Two carried pistols, while a third wielded a long gun. An eyewitness described the sequence of events, noting that the vehicle pulled up and the men fired without pause for five minutes before fleeing. The witness estimated that 150 to 200 people were present inside and around the church at the time. Most of the victims were between the ages of 50 and 70.

King Abdullah II reacted to the incident on social media, promising the "harshest retaliation" against the perpetrators. He stated, "Every Jordanian life is precious, and we will strike with an iron fist against those who dare to threaten our nation." Minister of Government Communications Mohammed Al-Momani indicated that security forces are currently investigating the site.

Lebanese President Joseph Aoun, the only Christian head of state in the Arab world, condemned the event as a "heaving terrorist attack." In a presidency statement, he said the incident "reaffirms once again that terrorism has no religion and no homeland, and its aim is to strike at coexistence and spread strife." Karak is located 110 miles south of Amman.

Violence has struck the Karak region before. In 2016, gunmen ambushed police in a series of attacks, including at a Crusader castle. Ten people died in that incident, seven of whom were officers, while dozens were wounded. Security forces engaged the attackers in a lengthy standoff before killing them.

Authorities continue to search for the three suspects who escaped the scene after the five minute barrage of gunfire.