Police arrived after the attack had ended, with Christians lying dead at the scene. Photo courtesy of Alsaa.
Gunmen opened fire on mourners at a funeral at St. George’s Greek Orthodox Church in the village of Hmood, in Jordan’s Karak governorate, on October 23, 2026. Seven people were killed and 34 wounded, according to the director of Jordan’s Public Security Directorate.
A public security official told a news conference that the shooting was a terrorist attack against Christians attending a funeral. A witness told CNN that the gunmen shouted “Allahu Akbar” as they fired into the church courtyard, where most of the mourners were standing.
The funeral was for a woman from Hmood, a Christian village north of the city of Karak. A witness told state broadcaster Al-Mamlaka that between 150 and 200 people were inside and around the church when the attack began. Most of the victims were between 50 and 70 years old.
A member of the Halasah family told The National that three doctors were among those killed.
Survivors said they heard an explosion as the funeral procession began. Masked attackers then entered the church and fired for several minutes. The Public Security Directorate said the assailants got out of a vehicle and stormed the compound before opening fire.
Security camera footage aired by Al-Mamlaka showed three people shooting at the church from a sidewalk while sheltering behind trees and a low wall. Two of the gunmen carried pistols and the third carried a long gun.
Witnesses said the gunmen first fired at people outside the church and then toward the building’s entrance, which the footage showed them running toward. An eyewitness said the shooting continued for about five minutes before the attackers fled.
Initial casualty reports varied. Al-Mamlaka reported seven dead and around 10 wounded, while the Public Security Directorate subsequently announced six dead and 28 wounded. The directorate later raised the toll to seven dead and 34 wounded.
Interior Minister Mazen Al-Faraya said the attack was carried out by a “group of extremists”. He called it unprecedented but did not name a specific group. No group has claimed responsibility, and the attackers have not been identified.
Security forces launched a manhunt for the perpetrators. Government spokesman Mohammad Al-Momani said Prime Minister Jafar Hassan would chair a security meeting in Karak.
The Public Security Directorate urged the public to rely only on official statements. Jordan’s state news agency, Petra, reported that Amman Prosecutor General Hassan Al-Abdallat had imposed a publication ban on news, information, photographs, and videos related to the case and its investigation. The ban extends to social media, with government media under the Ministry of Government Communication exempted.
King Abdullah II wrote on X that the attack on Karak would be met with the “harshest retaliation.” He visited the wounded in hospital and spoke with them about their condition, according to footage aired by Al Mamlaka. Queen Rania said the crime against worshippers in Karak had affected all Jordanians.
Lebanese President Joseph Aoun, the only Christian head of state in the Arab world, called the shooting a “heinous terrorist attack.” Gulf Cooperation Council Secretary General Jasem Mohamed Albudaiwi condemned the attack on the church and declared the GCC’s full solidarity with Jordan.
UN spokesman Stéphane Dujarric said an attack on a place of worship during a funeral is especially heinous. Aid to the Church in Need issued a statement of solidarity with Jordan’s Greek Orthodox community.
Christians make up about 2 percent of Jordan’s population, according to CNN. Karak was the site of a 2016 attack in which gunmen killed 10 people, including security officers and a Canadian tourist, before holing up in the city’s Crusader-era castle. Jordanian forces killed the attackers, and the Islamic State later claimed responsibility.
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