Gunmen kill seven at church funeral in Hmoud, Jordan

Seven people were killed and at least 34 injured when gunmen opened fire on a church funeral in Hmoud, a town in Jordan’s Karak governorate, on Friday. The attackers arrived in a vehicle, entered the building and began shooting before fleeing in a pickup truck. Interior Minister Mazen al‑Faraya called the assailants “a group of extremists” and said the death toll was later confirmed at seven.

Jordan has rarely seen such violence, and the incident comes amid heightened regional tensions and a rise in extremist activity. King Abdullah II condemned the attack and promised the “harshest penalties” for those responsible. The death count fluctuated after the attack, first reported as six before officials corrected it to seven, underscoring the chaos of the scene.

CCTV footage verified by the BBC shows three men with handguns approaching the church, pausing at a vehicle entrance, then returning with a third shooter. Witnesses described a fifteen‑minute siege, with congregants diving under pews, clutching children and fleeing as gunfire and the sound of machine guns echoed through the sanctuary. One survivor heard what sounded like an explosion and described the courtyard filled with bodies. Security forces surrounded the hospital treating the wounded, and anger swelled among Karak residents as they waited for answers.

Authorities have launched a manhunt for the gunmen and are reviewing the video evidence to identify them. The interior ministry said investigators are working “painfully and horrifically” to bring the perpetrators to justice, a task described as unprecedented in Jordan’s history. The attack is likely to prompt tighter security at religious sites and could shape Jordan’s counter‑terrorism policies, as the kingdom seeks to reassure a shaken public and deter future assaults.