Jordan Arrests Three Church Attack Suspects — Then Strikes Back Across the Border in Syria

Jordanian security forces arrested three suspects on Monday over last week's deadly attack on a Greek Orthodox church, ending a manhunt that followed one of the worst assaults on the country's Christian minority in decades. The men were cornered in an abandoned house in Karak and wounded in a dawn shootout before being taken into custody. No security personnel were hurt, and officers recovered firearms and a large cache of ammunition from the hideout.

The attack struck on Friday, 23 October, when gunmen opened fire on mourners at a funeral at St George's Greek Orthodox Church in the village of Hamoud, about 90 kilometres south of Amman. Nine people were killed and around 40 wounded. Jordan declared three days of national mourning, and thousands gathered on Sunday to bury eight of the victims beside the church, with Muslim clerics and tribal leaders joining Christian mourners in a show of solidarity.

Later on Monday, Jordan's Public Security Directorate named the arrested men as brothers Hazzah Zaidan Mohammad and Mishal Zaidan Mohammad, and their brother-in-law Ahmad Sami Hussein. The directorate's chief described them as 'takfiri' militants but said they were not tied to any organised group. Hours later, Jordan's air force carried out retaliatory strikes against groups in Syria linked to the attack, killing and wounding many fighters. King Abdullah II had ordered an 'iron fist' response, and officials say the suspects will face trial, where murder can carry the death penalty.

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