Jordan Arrests Terrorists, Begins Strikes Against Those Behind Church Massacre

Jordan has arrested gunmen and conducted air strikes against terrorist cells responsible for a church massacre.

Jordanian law enforcement has arrested three armed militants accused of carrying out a mass shooting during a funeral held at a Greek Orthodox Church near the city of Karak on Oct. 23, according to the BBC. Additionally, the Jordanian Air Force conducted strikes against terrorist groups alleged to be involved with the church shooting, Reuters reported Monday.

The Jordanian government did not immediately respond for comment.

Nine people were killed and 34 more were injured in the attack, per the BBC.

“The terrorist attack against Karak will be met with the harshest retaliation. Those who delude themselves into thinking that they can divide Jordanians with their bullets have no chance in the face of our unity … every Jordanian life is precious, and we will strike with an iron fist against those who dare to threaten our nation,” Jordanian King Abdullah II wrote in an Oct. 23 X post.

The militants were located in an abandoned house just south of the capital city of Amman. Refusing to surrender, the militants opened fire on the security forces, who then returned fire. There were no deaths as a result of this shootout, according to the BBC. The Jordanian king praised the security forces for “chasing them to the very end” in a Monday X post.

The identities of the gunmen remain anonymous, but the massacre was believed to be a terrorist attack as the king had called it. No group has yet come forward to claim responsibility, per the BBC.

The Jordanian Air Force announced that it struck terrorist hideouts in Syria on Monday, claiming the groups had links to the church shooting. It is unclear if these strikes were in coordination with the Syrian government, according to Reuters.