JORDAN ARRESTS THREE SUSPECTS AFTER DEADLY CHURCH ATTACK AS INVESTIGATION EXPANDS BEYOND ITS BORDERS

October 27, 2026

AMMAN, October 26, 2026: Jordanian security forces have arrested three suspects in connection with a deadly attack on a Greek Orthodox church in the country’s Karak governorate, in which nine people were killed and at least 34 others injured. The arrests followed a shootout on Monday after security forces located the suspects hiding in an abandoned house.

According to Jordanian authorities, the suspects—two brothers and their brother-in-law—refused to surrender and opened fire on security personnel. Officers returned fire, wounded all three and took them into custody. Firearms and ammunition were recovered, while no security personnel were reported injured.

The attack took place on Friday during a funeral at a Greek Orthodox church in the village of Hamoud, approximately 120 kilometres southwest of the capital, Amman. Witnesses said gunmen opened fire for several minutes, turning a religious gathering into a deadly scene of violence. No group has claimed responsibility for the assault.

Jordan’s King Abdullah has called for a forceful response to the attack, while senior security officials have pledged to pursue those responsible. Interior Minister Mazen al-Faraya said the investigation remained open and that authorities had not identified links between the suspects and other militant cells.

The case took a wider regional turn on Monday when Jordan said its air force had struck what it described as militant hideouts in southern Syria, alleging that the suspects were linked to terrorist groups operating there. Jordan said the operation was coordinated with Damascus, but Syria expressed reservations about the strikes, saying they had taken place without prior coordination.

Syrian Civil Defence reported that seven people, including three children and a woman, were killed and three others wounded in the strikes across Daraa and Sweida provinces. Syria subsequently closed the Nassib border crossing with Jordan, suspending passenger and commercial traffic in both directions.

The developments have transformed an attack on Jordan’s Christian minority into a broader security and diplomatic issue between the neighbouring countries. Investigations into the church shooting and the alleged cross-border militant connections remain ongoing, while the identities of any wider network behind the attack have yet to be established.