Seven killed and 34 wounded in shooting at Jordan church funeral

Seven people were killed and at least 34 wounded after masked gunmen opened fire at a church funeral in Hmoud, in Jordan’s central Karak governorate, officials said. The attack took place on Friday, and the perpetrators remained at large in the reports supplied. The attackers were reported to have arrived by car, entered the church and opened fire before fleeing.

The BBC said verified CCTV appeared to show three armed men approaching the church grounds, although initial accounts described two gunmen. Footage showed the men retreating briefly before returning with a third attacker. No group had claimed responsibility.

Interior Minister Mazen al-Faraya described the perpetrators as a “group of extremists” and said authorities were working to apprehend them. King Abdullah II said Jordan would confront what he called a terrorist act targeting Karak with the harshest penalties. The death toll changed during the initial reporting.

Officials first said seven people had been killed, a government spokesperson later revised the figure to six, and officials then returned to a toll of seven. The number of wounded was reported as at least 34 by both the BBC and Al Jazeera. Between 150 and 200 people were inside the church when the shooting began, according to one witness cited by the BBC.

Witness accounts described people taking cover under pews, moving away from windows and trying to escape while gunfire continued. The BBC said one witness estimated the attack lasted about 15 minutes, while another described roughly 10 minutes of escalating violence. The BBC reported that the gunmen left through the church doors and fled in a pickup truck, firing as they went.

It also described scenes of casualties inside and outside the building. Those details came from witness accounts and video reviewed by the broadcaster; the supplied material contains no official reconstruction of the attack. Security was tightened around the hospital treating the wounded, with roads closed and families gathering amid grief and anger.

The BBC said King Abdullah was expected to visit injured people. The reports did not provide information about the identities or motives of the attackers. Karak has a sizeable Christian community in predominantly Muslim Jordan, according to the BBC.

The broadcaster said violence of this kind is rare in the country, although deadly attacks have occurred in the past. The supplied reports do not link the shooting to any previously identified organisation. Lebanon’s President Joseph Aoun condemned what Lebanese media described as a heinous terrorist attack, saying it violated the sanctity of death and contradicted religious and humanitarian values.

Jordanian authorities continued to pursue the attackers as officials and families sought answers about the assault.