King Abdullah Orders Harshest Penalties After Karak Church Attack

Forty people were wounded when three gunmen opened fire at a funeral inside a Greek Orthodox church in Karak, Jordan, on Friday. Seven mourners died in the attack, which took place roughly 55 miles south of the capital, Amman.

Jordanian state television broadcast video of the assault. The footage shows two men carrying pistols walking toward the building and firing. A third man, holding a semiautomatic rifle, then advances and shoots. All three attackers run toward the church entrance. Witness recordings display broken glass and blood on the church floor.

Dorgham Halasa, who was inside the church, said gunfire erupted about 15 minutes after the service began. "It was a weird situation, and heavy gunfire," Halasa said. He did not see the attackers but reported that others told him they had spotted four individuals. Security services have not confirmed the exact number of assailants.

The government stated the attack was carried out by unknown assailants. Health Minister Ibrahim al-Budour said two of the wounded are in critical condition. Jordan declared three days of national mourning. King Abdullah II wrote on X that the nation will confront the terrorist act with the harshest penalties. He offered condolences to the families of the victims and wished the wounded a speedy recovery.

Prime Minister Jafar Hassan spoke at a security meeting in Karak on Friday evening. He described the attack as the product of terrorist ideology and blind extremism. Hassan said legal measures would be taken against those who seek to introduce extremism.

Karak has a minority Christian population. The town experienced deadly violence in 2016 when gunmen ambushed police near a Crusader castle. Ten people were killed in that incident, seven of whom were officers. Security forces killed the attackers after a long standoff.

International leaders condemned the shooting. U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres called the attack especially heinous because it occurred during a funeral. Grand Imam Ahmed al-Tayeb of Al-Azhar in Cairo described the event as a heinous terrorist attack. Iraqi Foreign Minister Fuad Hussein phoned his Jordanian counterpart to affirm solidarity.