Jordan Detains Three Men After Funeral Shooting at Church

Jordanian security forces arrested three armed men on Monday in connection with a shooting at a Greek Orthodox church that killed nine people.

The attack occurred on Friday during a funeral in the village of Hamoud, located in Karak governorate approximately 120 kilometers southwest of Amman. Forty additional people were wounded when gunfire lasted for several minutes, according to witnesses.

The Public Security Directorate stated that officers located the suspects hiding in an abandoned house in Karak. The men refused to surrender and opened fire on the security team, which returned fire until all three were wounded and taken into custody.

The directorate reported that no security personnel were injured in the exchange. Officers recovered multiple firearms and ammunition from the suspects. Authorities have not released the names of the men or identified specific ties to Islamist militant organizations.

Jordanian officials described the attackers as extremist terrorists, though no group has claimed responsibility. King Abdullah ordered security forces to use an iron fist in response to the assault on the country's Christian minority. Interior Minister Mazen al-Faraya said the government is examining factors that drive young people toward extremism and promised accountability for participants.

The directorate issued a statement declaring that terrorism has no place among the people and that the suspects had met their just fate. Such violence is considered rare in Jordan, a nation viewed as one of the more stable in the Middle East, despite previous disruptions of militant plots.