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![\"\"](\"https:\/\/thedialog.nyc3.digitaloceanspaces.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/26161345\/20261024T0700-JORDAN-ORTHODOX-CHURCH-ATTACK-1828866-scaled.jpg\" "\\"JORDAN")
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<\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\nAMMAN, Jordan \u2014 Church bells rang out at noon across Jordan Oct 24 in remembrance of the victims of a massacre in the kingdom\u2019s south that killed eight people and wounded 40 others during a funeral service the day before.<\/p>\n
Mourners had gathered at the St. George\u2019s Orthodox Church in Hammoud, one of Jordan\u2019s small Christian hamlets in the southern area of Karak, when three gunmen reportedly fired continuously for five minutes at them before fleeing the scene. One of those present said up to 200 mourners were in and around the church for the funeral service, adding that most of the victims were aged between 50 to 70 years old.<\/p>\n
Another parishioner told CNN that she and others fled and hid behind the church\u2019s altar for safety, fearing she would not make it out alive.<\/p>\n
<\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\nThe Pontifical Mission Societies is also very active in Hammoud, and the Christian community in that area provides support and humanitarian care to local parishes.<\/p>\n
Jordanians of all persuasions are reeling the day after the traumatic event, and it has also caused consternation for Christians in neighboring countries.<\/p>\n
Jordan\u2019s King Abdullah II condemned the massacre, vowing the \u201charshest retaliation\u201d against the attackers. The monarch rushed to the area to visit the wounded in local hospitals and to console those whose relatives were lost.<\/p>\n
\u201cEvery Jordanian life is precious, and we will strike with an iron fist against those who dare to threaten our nation,\u201d Abdullah said on the social media platform X. \u201cWhoever imagines that the bullets of treachery can divide the ranks of Jordanians will fail in his endeavor before our steadfastness and unity.\u201d<\/p>\n
Jordan\u2019s government has called the \u201cunprecedented act\u201d a \u201cterrorist attack\u201d against the entire nation.<\/p>\n
\u201cAny attack against a Jordanian, regardless of religion or belief, is an attack on Jordanian society as a whole,\u201d said Mohammad Momani, the official government spokesman, who said the gunmen were driven by extremist ideology.<\/p>\n
Momani stressed that Christians are deeply rooted in Jordan\u2019s history and national identity, contributing to its past, present and future.<\/p>\n
Jordanian Prime Minister Jaafar Hassan vowed to bring the perpetrators to justice and underscored the strictest legal action against anyone who incites discord or seeks to promote extremism within the community, according to The Jordan Times.<\/p>\n
Jordan, which is part of the Latin Patriarchate of Jerusalem, received a message from its patriarchs and head of churches expressing \u201cdeep sorrow and utter dismay\u201d for the \u201cheinous and inhuman\u201d terrorist attack firing \u201cindiscriminately on innocent worshippers.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThis terrorist attack against defenseless civilians is a grave offence against God and against humanity. To strike mourners at prayer, in a house of God, during the burial of their dead, violates every sacred and human value,\u201d the condolence message said.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt is an attack on the entire Christian community of the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan and on the exemplary fabric of Jordanian society, in which Muslims and Christians have lived together in unity and fraternity for generations,\u201d it added.<\/p>\n
It also extended heartfelt condolences to the victims\u2019 families and to His Beatitude Patriarch Theophilos III, the Greek Orthodox Patriarch of Jerusalem, the Orthodox Bishopric of Jordan and to the whole Patriarchate.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe are encouraged by the unequivocal words of His Majesty King Abdullah II and by the Jordanian people\u2019s firm rejection of this act. Such acts cannot and will not succeed in undermining the unity of the people of Jordan,\u201d the patriarchate message said.<\/p>\n
Archbishop Giovanni Pietro Dal Toso, apostolic nuncio to Jordan, also denounced the attack and visited the injured and their families in several hospitals on Oct. 24, accompanied by Bishop William Shomali of the Latin Patriarchate of Jerusalem, \u201cto convey the closeness, solidarity, and condolences of the Holy Father,\u201d Jordan\u2019s official Petra news agency reported.<\/p>\n
During his Angelus address Oct. 25, Pope Leo XIV<\/a> sent out his prayers \u201cto all those who were injured or lost their lives last Friday in the terrorist attack on worshippers at the Orthodox Church of Saint George in Hamoud, Jordan.\u201d He expressed his \u201ccloseness to the community and the entire country, which is known for its peaceful coexistence and respect between different religions.\u201d<\/p>\n Father Rif\u2019at Bader, director of Amman\u2019s Catholic Center for Studies and Media, invited Christians and Muslims to a candlelight vigil and prayer on Oct. 24 at his parish, the Sacred Heart of Jesus Church.<\/p>\n \u201cLet us offer our prayers for our cherished homeland, for the repose of the souls of the martyrs, and for the swift recovery of the wounded and injured,\u201d he urged.<\/p>\n Although Jordan suffered what it calls its own 9\/11, in which Al-Qaida-linked suicide bombers attacked three hotels in Amman on Nov. 9, 2005, the kind of sectarian violence that has wracked Syria, Iraq and Lebanon is extremely rare. Some 60 people were killed, mainly Jordanian Muslim women and children.<\/p>\n Lebanon\u2019s President Joseph Aoun, the Arab world\u2019s only Christian head of state, called the church shooting a \u201cheinous terrorist attack.\u201d It \u201creaffirms once again that terrorism<\/a> has no religion and no homeland, and its aim is to strike at coexistence and spread strife,\u201d according the president\u2019s statement.<\/p>\n Karak experienced a series of attacks in 2016 targeting police, including at the town\u2019s historic \u201ccrusader castle,\u201d popular with tourists. Ten people were killed, including seven officers, and dozens of others were wounded. Jordanian security forces killed the gunmen after a long standoff.<\/p>\n