Gunmen kill nine at St George's church in Karak, Jordan

Gunmen opened fire at a funeral service at St George's Greek Orthodox church in the town of Hamoud, Jordan, on Friday, killing nine people and wounding 40 others. The incident, which occurred in Karak governorate, marks a rare violent strike against the country's Christian minority. Jordanian officials have classified the event as a terrorist act carried out by extremists.

Maj Gen Abdallah al-Maaytah, head of the Public Security Directorate, stated that the majority of the injured are receiving medical treatment. He confirmed that security forces are actively searching for the perpetrators. The Health Minister independently confirmed the casualty count, reporting 40 individuals were treated for injuries sustained during the shooting.

Interior Minister Mazin Al Farrayeh described the attackers as extremists but noted it was too early to determine specific affiliations with known groups inside or outside Jordan. No organization has claimed responsibility for the attack as of Saturday.

State television aired footage from a security camera at the church, which Reuters verified by matching the entry path and surrounding structures. The video shows three individuals firing toward the building from a pavement. They sheltered behind trees and a low wall before running toward the church entrance.

Witnesses described a chaotic scene where gunfire continued for several minutes. Priest Theodoros Soueiss told attendees to get down as panic spread through the congregation. "A sense of panic took hold among those present," Soueiss said. "The gunfire was indiscriminate, and you never knew where a bullet might land." Khaled Burqan, another attendee, told Al-Mamlaka television that dozens of people were present when the shooting began. Ihab Ammareen said he saw bloodied people collapse on the floor, adding, "People were crying, wailing, screaming, it's hard to describe."

Prime Minister Jafar Hassan posted on X that the attack was the result of a terrorist ideology and blind extremism. He vowed that society would not allow this path to continue. King Abdullah visited Karak within hours of the incident and promised the perpetrators would be punished with an iron fist. He said those who think they can divide Jordanians with bullets have no chance in the face of national unity.

Following the attack, the US embassy in Amman announced that security had been stepped up at malls, foreign embassies, and other locations across the country. UN Secretary General António Guterres condemned the violence, stating that attacks on civilians and places of worship are unacceptable. Mike Waltz, the US ambassador to the UN, called the incident a depraved and brutal attack on a house of worship.

Jordan is generally considered stable, though US authorities say they have foiled several attempted attacks by Islamist militants in recent years. The country was among the US allies in the region hit by Iranian attacks earlier this year after US and Israeli strikes in February. Christians remain a minority in Jordan, a nation home to several biblical sites that attract pilgrims from around the world.

Outside a government hospital in Karak, families gathered to support the wounded. Hani Al-Mbaydeen said the state must investigate where such dark ideas come from and how they enter the minds of children.