Jordan church attack death toll rises to nine, minister says

Amman — Two more people wounded in the gun attack on a church funeral in southern Jordan have died of their injuries, bringing the death toll to nine, The Hindu reported, citing health minister Ibrahim al-Bdour speaking to AFP.

The minister said the second of two critically injured casualties died on Saturday. Another 25 people remain in hospital, he added.

Gunmen stormed the compound of a Greek Orthodox church in the village of Hammoud, in Karak governorate, during a funeral procession on Friday, October 23, and opened fire, according to Jordanian authorities. Seven people were reported killed in the immediate aftermath; Wide World News covered the first funerals as the wounded were taken to Prince Ali Military Hospital in Karak.

King Abdullah II, who met victims after the attack, told a National Security Council meeting on Saturday that "the security and safety of Jordanians are a red line", adding that "the hand of justice will reach every terrorist". On Friday he had promised the shooting would be met with the "harshest retaliation" possible.

Interior minister Mazen al-Faraya told a press conference that "a terrorist group has carried out a horrific act, one that is condemned in every respect, and the security services are working round the clock to track them down". Authorities have not publicly identified the attackers or said whether any arrests have been made.

Prime Minister Jafar Hassan ordered three days of national mourning from Friday, with flags flown at half-mast over government and public institutions. Karak is home to a significant Christian community in the Muslim-majority kingdom, where Christians make up between two and three percent of the population.

For now, the families of Hammoud are waiting on two things: news of the 25 still in hospital, and word from the security services on who carried out the attack and whether they have been caught.