Jordan's State Security Court on Sunday sentenced three men to death for a deadly shooting at a Greek Orthodox church in the Karak governorate last month, the state-run Al Mamlaka TV said, in a verdict reported by the Associated Press. The October 23 attack on mourners attending a funeral was one of the deadliest on Jordan's Christian minority in decades, with nine people killed and dozens more wounded.

Source: Associated Press via KCAU 9

Jordan's official Petra news agency said the court convicted the three defendants on multiple charges, including carrying out terrorist acts resulting in nine deaths in conspiracy, carrying out terrorist acts using weapons and ammunition on two counts, possessing weapons and ammunition with terrorist intent, conspiring to commit terrorist acts, and promoting terrorist group ideology.

Source: Petra via Fana News

Awaaz Punjab has followed the case since the attack, including the arrests and the confirmed toll of nine dead. Read the earlier report on the Karak church attack toll

The attack on a funeral in Hammoud

The attack struck St George's Church in the village of Hammoud, in the Karak governorate about 90 kilometres (55 miles) south of the capital, Amman, on October 23, 2026, during a funeral procession, Petra reported. Gunmen opened fire on the mourners, killing nine people.

The three defendants, identified by authorities as two brothers and their brother-in-law, were arrested three days after the attack following a shootout with security forces in Karak, the Associated Press reported. All three were wounded in that shootout. Jordanian authorities described the men as followers of an extremist ideology but said they were not affiliated with an organized group, and no group claimed responsibility for the attack.

From charges to verdict in under a month

Prosecutors charged the three men with terrorism offences in early November, with the gravest charge — committing a terrorist act resulting in death — carrying a possible death sentence under Jordan's anti-terrorism law, AFP reported at the time. Sunday's verdict came less than a month after the attack itself.

Days after the attack, Jordan launched airstrikes in southern Syria, saying they targeted militant groups linked to the attack. Syrian authorities disputed Jordan's account and reported civilian deaths, the Associated Press reported.

What happens next

The State Security Court's ruling is subject to automatic appeal before the Court of Cassation under Jordanian law, Petra said, so the sentences are not final until that review is complete.