Seven killed and 34 wounded in Jordan church shooting

Gunmen opened fire during a funeral at a Greek Orthodox church in Jordan’s southern Karak governorate on Friday, killing seven people and wounding 34, according to the country’s Public Security Directorate.

The assailants arrived in a vehicle, attacked mourners at the church compound in the village of Hammoud and then fled, authorities and witnesses said. Security forces launched a manhunt and an investigation. The attackers’ identities and motive were not immediately clear.

Initial reports differed on the number of casualties. Government spokesperson Mohammad al-Momani earlier reported six deaths and 28 injuries, while later accounts citing the Public Security Directorate put the toll at seven dead and 34 wounded. A witness quoted by state broadcaster Al-Mamlaka said 150 to 200 people were in and around the church when the shooting began.

Interior Minister Mazen Al-Faraya described the perpetrators as a “group of extremists.” King Abdullah II called the shooting a “terrorist attack,” offered condolences to the victims’ families and said those responsible would face the “harshest retaliation.” Public Security Directorate chief Maj. Gen. Abdallah Al Maaytah said the search for the attackers was continuing.