Jordan church funeral shooting kills at least seven as tolls conflict
Gunmen opened fire at a funeral at a Greek Orthodox church in Karak, with authorities still investigating and casualty figures changing.
By James Whitfield · Staff Writer
2 min read
Gunmen opened fire at a funeral at a Greek Orthodox church in Jordan’s Karak governorate on Friday, killing at least seven people, according to several reports. The Jordan church funeral shooting also left dozens wounded, but the reported toll varied through the day and no final figure is clear from available accounts.
Associated Press reporting published by NPR and ABC7 said authorities reported seven deaths and 40 injuries. The BBC reported seven dead and at least 34 injured, while CNN later reported at least nine killed and 40 injured. An earlier AP report put the toll at six dead and 28 wounded.
The BBC said officials initially reported seven deaths, then six, before returning the figure to seven. The changing counts mean the casualty totals should be treated as provisional.
What is known about the Jordan church funeral shooting?
The attack took place at a Greek Orthodox church in Karak governorate, an area with a Christian community. Jordanian authorities said the assailants had not been identified and that an investigation was under way.
Jordanian state television broadcast footage that appeared to show two armed men firing near the church before a third armed man arrived and opened fire, according to the Associated Press. Separately, the BBC said it verified CCTV footage apparently showing three armed men approaching the church.
Dorgham Halasa, a mourner interviewed by the Associated Press, said gunfire began about 15 minutes after the funeral started and people ran for safety. He did not see the attackers himself. He said others had reported four gunmen, but the Associated Press said it could not verify that number.
Have the attackers been identified or arrested?
No group had claimed responsibility, according to the BBC. A Jordanian government statement described the perpetrators as unknown assailants and did not say whether any had been captured or killed, the Associated Press reported.
Interior Minister Mazen al-Faraya said authorities were trying to apprehend those responsible, the BBC reported. Jordan declared three days of national mourning, according to the kingdom’s Petra News Agency.
King Abdullah II and Prime Minister Jafar Hassan described the attack as an act of terrorism and tied it to extremist ideology, according to the Associated Press. Those statements are official characterizations; the available reports did not establish a motive or identify those behind the shooting.
Jordan’s health minister said two of the wounded were in critical condition, the Associated Press reported. Karak was also the scene of attacks by gunmen in 2016 that killed 10 people, including seven police officers; the reports did not link that violence to Friday’s shooting.
This story draws on original reporting from NPR.