Crimeupdated 13m ago3 min read
Archive photo · 28 March 2023Jordan Sentences Three Men to Death by Hanging for Karak Church Attack
“It is still unclear why the attackers chose to target that specific church.”
“King Abdullah II said those behind the attack would face the ‘harshest penalties’”
Photo: Petar Milošević, CC BY-SA 4.0 · Cropped for layout
This article is an automated aggregation of coverage from news outlets. Our editorials offer in-depth analysis curated by the NewsCord team.
Three men sentenced to death by hanging for the Karak church attack that killed nine. October 23 attack occurred during a church funeral in Hamoud, Karak, nine killed.
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Death sentences after Karak attack
A Jordanian court sentenced three men to death by hanging for carrying out a gun attack on a church in the kingdom’s south, after armed men killed nine people and wounded 25 others when they stormed a funeral at a Greek Orthodox church in Hammoud village in the Karak governorate on October 23. The Jordanian military said the “State Security Court issued its ruling sentencing to death the three criminals who carried out the terrorist attack,” and it described the convictions as including “committing terrorist attacks” resulting in death, weapons offences, “conspiracy to commit terrorist acts” and “promoting the ideas of a terrorist organisation”. Authorities said the three men, described as two Jordanian brothers and their relative by marriage, fled after the attack and were arrested three days later.
The attack on 23 October killed nine people and injured 34 others who had been attending a Christian funeral at a Greek Orthodox church in Karak governorate, and it added that the men have not been publicly identified. The State Security Court ruling was described as subject to appeal and automatic review by the Court of Cassation, according to Petra as carried by Arab News PK and as described in the Al-Jazira Net account.
Court charges and family reactions
Al-Jazira Net said the court ordered execution after convicting the defendants under the Terrorism Prevention Law No. 55 of 2006 and its amendments, and the Penal Code No. 16 of 1960 and its amendments, with one perpetrator also convicted of providing money to finance terrorist acts under the Anti-Money Laundering and Terrorist Financing Law No. 20 of 2021.
Hassan al-Shubaki said in a live contact from outside the State Security Court that “hearings were held on November 4, 8, and 11 this month via video link,” and he said investigations revealed prior planning, a conspiracy to carry out terrorist acts, financial support, and procuring weapons.
Al-Jazira Net said the court distinguished in its rulings between those who directly carried out the attack and those who provided support and assistance, and it described a mood of relief among victims’ families and segments of Jordanians after the pronouncement date was announced.
Former Jordanian Interior Minister Samir Al-Habashneh said the death sentences were “expected and warranted,” and he argued that restoring the notion of capital punishment would deter serious crimes and terrorist acts.
The BBC said CCTV footage showed three men holding guns approaching and firing on St George’s church in the village of Hmoud, and it reported that a second video showed dead and wounded people lying on the ground amid chaotic scenes at the church.
Appeals, retaliation, and legal process
Jordan’s King Abdullah II said those behind the attack would face the “harshest penalties,” and he ordered a review of the country’s security procedures for responding to attacks after the incident. Jordan struck what its military said were “terrorist organisations” in Syria in retaliation to the church attack, and Syrian health officials told state media that five people, including women, children and an elderly man, were killed in the strike on a village in the southern Daraa province. Al-Jazira Net said the Jordanian Cabinet approved amendments to the Terrorism Prevention Law and sent them to the House of Representatives on an urgent basis, including tightening restrictions on early release for those convicted in terrorism cases.
Al-Jazira Net also said the court’s ruling is deemed a prima facie judgment under Jordanian law before the Court of Cassation, and it described the ruling as subject to appeal. Bells rang at the St George’s Greek Orthodox Church in Hamoud village after the sentences were announced, and the ruling was subject to appeal and automatic review by the Court of Cassation, as Petra said.