Death toll from Jordan church attack rises to 9

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   Security personnel stand outside the Greek Orthodox Church in Hamoud.—Reuters
Security personnel stand outside the Greek Orthodox Church in Hamoud.—Reuters

AMMAN: Two people wounded in Friday’s attack on a church in southern Jordan have died of their injuries, bringing the number of people killed to nine, health minister Ibrahim al-Bdour said on Saturday.

“The number of victims who died in the terrorist attack on the church in the village of Al-Hamoud in Karak has risen to nine following the death on Saturday of a second casualty who had been in a critical condition,” the minister said. Another 25 people remain hospitalised, he added.

King Abdullah II, who met victims after the attack, said during a National Security Council meeting on Saturday that “the security and safety of Jordanians are a red line”, adding that “the hand of justice will reach every terrorist”.

He said that the shooting would be met with the “harshest retaliation” possible. “A terrorist group has carried out a horrific act, one that is condemned in every respect, and the security services are working round the clock to track them down,” interior minister Mazen al-Faraya told a press conference.

Prime Minister Jafar Hassan ordered a three-day period of national mourning from Friday, with flags to be flown at half-mast over government and public institutions.

Karak is home to a significant Christian community in the Muslim-majority kingdom, where Christians make up between two and three per cent of the population.

Meanwhile, Pakistan condemned the heinous terrorist attack at the funeral procession in Karak governorate, Jordan, which resulted in the loss of several precious lives, with many injured.

“Pakistan extends its heartfelt condolences to the government and the people of the brotherly Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan, especially the bereaved families, on the loss of their loved ones, and expresses its sincere wishes for the speedy recovery of those injured,” the Foreign Office Spokesperson said in a press statement on Saturday.

Published in Dawn, October 25th, 2026

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