AMMAN, October 25, 2026 — Jordan buried on Sunday the nine victims of a gun attack on a church funeral in the southern governorate of Karak, as the death toll climbed from seven to nine and King Abdullah II ordered security forces to respond with an “iron fist”.
Two more of the wounded died in hospital on Saturday, Jordan’s Health Minister Ibrahim al-Badour said, taking the toll to nine. Dozens more were wounded in the shooting at St George’s Greek Orthodox Church in Hamoud village, about 100 kilometres south of Amman, during a funeral service on Friday.
A rare attack on a Christian minority
Gunmen opened fire on mourners gathered in the church compound on Friday, witnesses said, in an attack that lasted several minutes and sent mourners scrambling for cover. Jordan’s Public Security Directorate said three assailants were involved; none had been captured as of Sunday, and no group had claimed responsibility.
Such attacks are rare in Jordan, a relatively stable kingdom that is home to a small Christian minority and several biblical sites that draw pilgrims from around the world. Authorities said it was too early to say whether the attackers had links to groups inside or outside the country.
King vows ‘iron fist’ response
King Abdullah chaired a National Security Council meeting on Saturday, condemning the attack and ordering the government to review its policies for countering extremist ideology. He described the attackers as “outlaws of Islam” and said the safety of Jordanians was a red line, state media reported.
The government declared three days of national mourning from Friday, and security was stepped up at shopping malls, foreign embassies and churches across the country. On Sunday, security forces were stationed at churches during services in what local reports described as an unprecedented tightening of security at Christian sites.
Funerals and international condemnation
Official and popular funeral ceremonies were held on Sunday afternoon, with a unified procession carrying the victims to a burial site in Hamoud village, opposite the church where the attack took place, where a mass grave site and a commemorative monument had been prepared, Jordan’s Petra news agency reported. Joint condolence halls were opened in Karak to receive mourners for all the victims’ families.
Condemnations poured in from abroad. Malaysia and Tunisia issued statements on Sunday expressing solidarity with Jordan and condemning the assault on a place of worship, joining earlier condemnations from Pakistan and Türkiye.
The manhunt for the attackers continued on Sunday, officials said, as investigators worked to establish a motive. The attack has shaken a kingdom long regarded as an island of relative stability in a turbulent region — and left its Christian community grieving nine of its own.
