Gunmen kill seven at funeral in Jordanian town of Karak

Chaos erupted inside a stone building in Karak, Jordan, when gunfire shattered a funeral service on Friday.

Authorities confirmed that seven people were killed and forty others were wounded in the assault on a Greek Orthodox church. The town sits about 90 kilometers south of the capital, Amman. State television aired footage showing three men approaching the structure. Two held pistols and one carried a semiautomatic rifle. They fired before running toward the entrance. Witness videos captured broken glass and blood on the interior floor.

Dorgham Halasa, a mourner inside the room, said the shooting began roughly 15 minutes after the ceremony started. He described the scene as intense, with heavy gunfire forcing people to run. Halasa did not see the attackers personally, but other mourners told him they spotted four individuals. The Associated Press could not verify the number of assailants, and Jordanian security services did not immediately release specific details.

The government described the incident as an act by unknown assailants. It stated that investigations were proceeding at full speed but did not say if any shooters had been captured. Health Minister Ibrahim al-Budour noted that two of the injured patients are in critical condition. King Abdullah II posted on X that Jordan would confront the terrorist act with the harshest penalties. He extended condolences to the families of the dead. Prime Minister Jafar Hassan, speaking at a security meeting in Karak, labeled the attack the result of terrorist ideology and blind extremism.

Karak has a history of violence affecting its minority Christian community. In 2016, gunmen ambushed police in the area, including at a Crusader castle, killing ten people and wounding dozens. Regional leaders quickly offered support. Grand Imam Ahmed al-Tayeb of Al-Azhar in Cairo called the shooting a heinous terrorist attack. Iraqi Foreign Minister Fuad Hussein phoned his Jordanian counterpart to affirm solidarity. United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres condemned the event, noting its particular horror because it occurred during a funeral. His spokesman, Stephane Dujarric, said Guterres called for those responsible to be held to account.

Jordan has declared three days of national mourning for the victims.