At least seven people were killed Friday when several gunmen opened fire at a church in Jordan, an attack King Abdullah II condemned as an act of terrorism.
The shooting happened during a funeral at a Greek Orthodox church in Karak, roughly 110 miles south of Amman, leaving 34 others injured. The city is home to a Christian minority.
“The terrorist attack against Karak will be met with the harshest retaliation,” King Abdullah II said in a post on X. He warned that anyone seeking to fracture Jordanian society through violence would fail in the face of the country’s unity.
The king offered condolences to the victims’ families and wished those wounded a quick recovery, stressing that Jordanians across the country are united by a shared destiny. “Every Jordanian life is precious,” he wrote, vowing that authorities would respond forcefully to anyone threatening the nation.
Residents and security personnel gather outside a Greek Orthodox church in the village of Hammoud, in Jordan’s Karak governorate, following a shooting on Oct. 23, 2026. Authorities said gunmen killed at least seven people. (AFP via Getty Images)
Footage aired by Jordanian state television appeared to show two men carrying handguns approaching the church before firing, according to The Associated Press.
A third man, apparently armed with a semiautomatic rifle, then opened fire. The three suspects were later seen running in the direction of the church.
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Jordan’s government described the assailants as unknown and did not disclose whether any suspects had been arrested or killed. Officials said a full investigation was proceeding rapidly.
Ambulances wait outside Prince Ali Military Hospital in Karak, Jordan, where people wounded in a shooting at a Greek Orthodox church funeral were receiving treatment Friday, Oct. 23, 2026. (AP)
Karak was also the scene of a deadly attack in 2016, when gunmen targeted police at several locations, including a Crusader castle visited by tourists. Ten people, among them seven officers, were killed and dozens were injured before Jordanian security forces ended the attackers’ standoff.
Maj. Gen. Obeidallah Maaytah, Jordan’s director of public security, said at a news conference that 27 people wounded in Friday’s attack remained hospitalized.
A security officer patrols outside a Greek Orthodox church in Hamoud village, within Jordan’s Karak governorate, after gunmen opened fire during a funeral on Friday, Oct. 23, 2026. (AP)
Iraqi Foreign Minister Fuad Hussein said he spoke with his Jordanian counterpart and expressed Iraq’s support for Jordan as it confronts terrorism.