Muhammed Emin Canik, Gizem Nisa Demir, Laith Al-Junaidi and Lina Altawell
26 October 2026•Update: 26 October 2026
Jordanian security forces have arrested three suspects in connection with a recent gun attack on a church, an official said Monday.
Government spokesman Mohammad al-Momani said in a statement posted on US social media company X that the suspects were arrested from an abandoned house in the southern Karak governorate.
The attack on Friday targeted people attending a funeral at Hamoud Church in Karak, killing nine people and injuring 25 others.
Momani said the suspects opened fire on security forces during a raid.
They were neutralized in the ensuing clash and captured wounded, he added.
No security personnel were injured in the operation.
Authorities also seized a large cache of weapons and ammunition at the scene, he said.
Jordanian Public Security Director Obaidallah Maaytah said the three had not planned the attack in advance but decided to carry it out while they were behind the funeral procession.
Speaking at a news conference, Maaytah said two of the attackers were brothers and the third was their brother-in-law, attributing the attack to their adoption of “extremist and terrorist ideology.”
“The three fled the scene in one vehicle, which authorities later seized and linked to them,” he said.
“Security teams spent three days searching specific areas, including villages, mountainous terrain and rugged valleys, while sealing off the area, setting up checkpoints and patrols and using drones to track the attackers,” Maaytah said.
After midnight, security forces divided one village into sectors and searched abandoned homes before locating the building where the attackers had barricaded themselves, he added.
The three were arrested following an armed clash and taken to a hospital with injuries, where they remain under treatment before questioning begins, he continued.
Interior Minister Mazin AlFarrayeh said capturing the attackers did not mean the investigation was over.
“Authorities would continue investigating all circumstances surrounding the attack and hold accountable anyone found to have participated in planning, incitement, assistance or facilitation,” he said.
The minister said confronting terrorism required addressing the roots of extremism, hate speech and incitement.
Earlier Monday, King Abdullah II said that “terrorists will not escape punishment, nor will anyone with an ideology that divides Jordanians.”
Following the attack, Jordan declared three days of national mourning, and flags were lowered to half-staff at ministries, government offices and public institutions.
