Eight people have died following a shooting at a funeral at a Greek Orthodox church in southern Jordan, the health minister said on Saturday.
Gunmen struck on Friday at the Church of Saint George in the village of Hammoud, in Karak governorate, as mourners gathered for the service. Dozens were injured.
Footage from Jordanian state television showed armed men approaching the church and opening fire.
Police initially reported seven dead but one survivor later died from their injuries.
One mourner, Dorgham Halasa, told the Associated Press that the shooting started around a quarter of an hour into the service, sending people fleeing.
The interior minister has described the assault as a terrorist attack by extremists. No group has claimed responsibility, and Jordanian authorities said on Saturday they were still searching for those behind it.
The US embassy in Amman said security had been stepped up at shopping malls, foreign missions and other sites.
King Abdullah II has visited wounded survivors at a military hospital in Karak. In a post on X, he said the attack would be met with the “harshest retaliation”. Queen Rania called it a “heinous crime that has devastated us all”, Arab News reports. Prime Minister Jafar Hassan declared three days of national mourning.
The Jerusalem Patriarchate, which oversees the Greek Orthodox church in Jordan, issued a statement from Patriarch Theophilos III, the Holy Synod and Metropolitan Christophoros of Jordan.
The Church leaders called it a “vile, cowardly, and bloody act”, but said that the Christian community would not be driven out by it.
"Despite the immense pain felt throughout all of Jordan, and by all honorable people across the world, this abhorrent, bloody act will not undermine our national unity or our steadfastness," they said.
"On the contrary, it only strengthens the bond between Christians and Muslims, uniting us more firmly around our Hashemite leadership.
"If the intent behind this message is to uproot us from our Holy Land and displace us, it will only serve to strengthen our attachment to it and deepen our roots within it. No matter how intense the events around us may become, or what hardships may befall us, we shall not be driven to leave our land.
"We are the children of this land, its very roots, and partners in its history, its present, and its future. We shall remain here as witnesses to the faith, regardless of how great the challenges or how severe the trials may be.
"We hold an absolute conviction that our Jordanian society will remain resilient against any dark, extremist ideology, and that this criminal act is entirely alien and contrary to the moderate Islam practiced in our country.
"We call upon our flock and all the faithful to remain steadfast and to pray during these moments."
Al Jazeera reports that UN Secretary-General António Guterres condemned the attack through his spokesman, Stephane Dujarric, who told reporters, “It goes without saying that an attack not only on a place of worship but during a funeral procession is especially heinous."
Karak is home to a long-established Christian community in a country that is mostly Muslim.
