"The death toll from the attack on the church in the village of Hamoud," in the Karak governorate, “rose to nine following the death of a second injured person who was in critical condition,” the minister said. Earlier today, he had announced the eighth fatality.
He clarified that 25 people injured in the attack remain hospitalized.
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The service had just begun at the mosque in Jordan yesterday when Nasser al-Burkan heard a noise that he thought was an air conditioner exploding. However, the bursts of gunfire continued, and he soon realized they were gunshots.
Some people ran to escape. According to him, others—some of whom were bleeding—tried to hide inside the church, where a funeral service was being held for a relative of his.
When the shooting finally stopped, after several minutes, Burkan said he was able to clearly see the perpetrators of the attack, which Jordanian authorities described as an act of extremist terrorism that resulted in the deaths of eight people.
“When silence finally fell, I looked out the window behind me and saw two people; one had his face covered, while the other did not and was holding a revolver,” said Burkan, a lawyer by profession.
As he reported, one of the assailants, who was standing about two meters away, pointed the gun at him and began firing. Shards of broken glass caused him to bleed from the face. He told those who wanted to take him to a hospital for first aid that he was fine.
His son was shot in the leg
Shortly afterward, his son, who was also attending the service, called him to say that he had been shot in the leg and was being treated at a hospital.
The attack on the Greek Orthodox church in Hamoud, in the Karak Governorate, about 120 km southwest of the capital Amman, shocked the community, which is part of Jordan’s Christian minority.
Such attacks are rare in Jordan, although authorities in the kingdom—a U.S. ally—say they have repeatedly thwarted plots by Islamist militants in recent years.
King Abdullah of Jordan, a U.S. partner in the fight against Islamist organizations, visited Karak hours after the attack and declared that the perpetrators would be punished “with an iron fist.”
Authorities said they were still searching for the perpetrators, adding that it was too early to determine whether they were linked to known groups inside or outside Jordan.
No one has claimed responsibility so far.
Security measures have been stepped up at shopping malls, foreign embassies, and other locations throughout Jordan, the U.S. Embassy in Amman announced today, as authorities search for the gunmen who also wounded 40 people.
Prime Minister Jafar Hassan declared three days of national mourning, beginning yesterday, while flags at government buildings are flying at half-mast.
The Karak district, with a population of approximately 375,000, is home to a significant Christian community.
According to the Ministry of Tourism, Christians make up 2% to 3% of the country’s population, which is predominantly Sunni Muslim.
Source: Proto Thema
