Jordanian security forces on Monday (Oct. 26) arrested three men suspected of killing nine Christians and injuring at least 28 other people during a funeral service three days earlier, the BBC and other media outlets reported.
The unnamed suspects fled to an abandoned house in Karak governorate, south of the capital city of Amman, where they were discovered before dawn, the Public Security Directorate said. The men refused to surrender and opened fire on security forces, who returned fire, wounding all three.
On the previous Friday afternoon, three armed men, allegedly Islam extremists, exited a vehicle and opened fire on mourners in the courtyard of St. George’s Greek Orthodox Church in Hmood in Karak province, reports said. A public security official later called the shooting a terrorist attack against Christians, and while local believers said the gunmen were young Muslims, Jordanian officials have not publicly confirmed their identity.
A witness told Al-Mamlaka television that there were more than 150 people within and outside the church building at the time of the attack.
‘Stunned’
The killing stunned the Middle East nation, which is known for strong inter-faith relations. Anti-Christian violence is rare, Al-Monitor, a Middle East news source said, mentioning only a 2008 attack against a Lebanese Christian choir in Amman and a foiled attempt to bomb a Roman Catholic church in 2009 as examples.
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EDITOR’S NOTE — This story was written by Jerri Menges and originally published by Decision Magazine.
