Funeral in Karak ends with 7 dead and 40 wounded

Funeral attendees in the Jordanian town of Karak faced a deadly ambush on Friday. Seven people died and 40 others were wounded when gunmen opened fire inside a Greek Orthodox church. The attack occurred in a town located 90 kilometers south of the capital, Amman.

Jordanian state television broadcast video showing two men with pistols approaching the building and firing shots. A third man, carrying a semiautomatic rifle, joined the assault. All three ran toward the church entrance. Witness footage captured broken glass and blood pooling on the church floor.

Dorgham Halasa, a mourner present inside the church, reported that heavy gunfire started approximately 15 minutes after the service began. He described the scene as a strange and chaotic situation as people fled. Halasa did not see the shooters himself but said others in the room identified four attackers. The Associated Press could not verify the total number of assailants, and security services did not immediately confirm details.

The government stated that unknown assailants carried out the attack. Officials said investigations were proceeding at full speed but did not confirm if any shooters had been captured or killed. Jordan declared three days of national mourning. Health Minister Ibrahim al-Budour noted that two of the wounded are in critical condition.

King Abdullah II posted on X that Jordan would confront the terrorist act with the harshest penalties. He expressed condolences to the families of the victims. Prime Minister Jafar Hassan spoke at a security meeting in Karak on Friday evening. He attributed the attack to terrorist ideology and blind extremism. He said legal measures would target those seeking to introduce extremism.

Karak has a minority Christian population and has experienced deadly violence previously. In 2016, gunmen ambushed police in a series of attacks in the town, including at a Crusader castle. Ten people died in that incident, seven of whom were officers. Security forces killed the gunmen after a long standoff.

Regional leaders and international officials condemned the shooting. Lebanon, Syria, Egypt, and Oman issued statements of grief. Ahmed al-Tayeb, grand imam of Al-Azhar, called the event a heinous terrorist attack. Iraqi Foreign Minister Fuad Hussein phoned his Jordanian counterpart to affirm solidarity. U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres called the attack especially heinous because it took place during a funeral. His spokesman, Stephane Dujarric, said Guterres called for all responsible parties to be found and held to account.