Seven die in five-minute church shooting in southern Jordan

Seven people died and 34 were wounded when gunmen attacked a church in southern Jordan on Friday.

Interior Minister Mazen Al-Faraya said a group of extremists carried out the assault in the village of Hammoud, located in Karak governorate. He described the incident as a rare violent act against Christians in the majority Sunni Muslim kingdom.

Public security officials reported that the assailants exited a vehicle during a funeral procession and stormed the compound of a Greek Orthodox church before opening fire. A manhunt for the perpetrators is currently underway. Karak lies 110 miles south of the capital, Amman, and is home to a substantial Christian population.

Footage from the state broadcaster Al-Mamlaka showed two men in casual clothing holding pistols and a third man carrying a long gun. The video captured the attackers firing from a street entrance before moving forward into the property.

An eyewitness told Al-Mamlaka that the vehicle stopped near the church and the shooters fired continuously for five minutes before fleeing. The witness estimated that 150 to 200 people were inside or around the church at the time. Most of the victims were between 50 and 70 years old.

King Abdullah II pledged the harshest retaliation against those responsible. He stated on social media that every Jordanian life is precious and that the nation would strike with an iron fist against those who threaten it. Lebanese President Joseph Aoun, the only Christian head of state in the Arab world, called the shooting a heinous terrorist attack that aims to strike at coexistence.

Karak has experienced deadly violence in the past. In 2016, gunmen ambushed police in a series of attacks in the area, including at a Crusader castle. Ten people were killed in that incident, seven of whom were officers. Security forces killed the attackers after a lengthy standoff.