Amman. Jordanian security forces on Monday arrested three suspects over an attack on a church last week that killed nine people, with the trio wounded in a dawn raid and shootout, authorities said.

The kingdom's Public Security Directorate said the group was cornered at an abandoned house where they had barricaded themselves inside and opened fire on security forces.

"All three terrorists have been injured. They have been taken to hospital and are still receiving treatment," Director of Public Security Major General Abdullah Al-Maaytah told a press conference.

On Friday, gunmen stormed the compound of the Greek Orthodox St George's Church in the village of Hammoud in Karak governorate during a funeral procession, authorities said.

Karak is home to a significant Christian community in Muslim-majority Jordan, where Christians make up between two and three percent of the population.

The arrested suspects -- two brothers and another man related by marriage -- are Islamic extremists, Maaytah said, adding they will be investigated and brought before the courts.

"This country must remain an oasis of security and stability, and we affirm that Jordan will remain impervious to anyone who dares to challenge it," he said.

One of the suspects was in critical condition, Jordan's state broadcaster Al-Mamlaka reported. There were no casualties among security forces, it added.

Under Jordanian law, murder is punishable by death by hanging.

Attacks on houses of worship in Jordan are rare. In 2016, an attack in Karak targeted a security centre and police patrols, leaving 10 people dead.

A number of weapons and a large quantity of ammunition were seized from the three suspects, the Public Security Directorate said.

'We Will Show Them'
Jordan's King Abdullah II said in a post on X that security forces "chased them to the very end".

"We vowed the terrorists would not escape punishment, and no proponent of dark ideologies that divide Jordanians will be tolerated," he wrote.

Earlier, the king visited wounded victims of the church attack in a hospital, dressed in military fatigues and carrying a pistol on his hip.

"We will show them," he vowed.

Interior Minister Mazen al-Faraya told Al-Mamlaka on Monday that the attackers were all Jordanians and "had been holed up in a building in one of the villages near the site of the attack".

"There is no indication of any external contacts or collaboration with foreign parties," he said.

Government communications minister Mohammad al-Momani said, "We stand ready and will strike with an iron fist, without mercy or leniency, against anyone who attempts to undermine Jordan's security".

On Friday, Prime Minister Jafar Hassan ordered three days of national mourning for the victims of the church attack, with flags to be flown at half-mast over government and public institutions.

Eight of the nine victims were laid to rest on Sunday next to the church in a funeral that drew a huge crowd amid a large security presence, AFP images showed.

The ninth person, Mohammed al-Qasous, was buried in south Amman on Monday.
 

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