Jordan Hits Syria Militants Linked to Deadly Church Attack

WHO:

Euronews.com - Jordan government spokesperson Mohammad Al-Momani said the strikes killed more than 20 Islamic State operatives and destroyed a major weapons depot.

Euronews.com - Nassouh al-Salim said his mother, older brother, and three children were killed when a missile struck while they were asleep: “My mother, my older brother and his three children -- two boys and a girl -- were killed.”

Al Jazeera - ISIL (ISIS) claimed responsibility for the church attack.

Al Jazeera - Syria’s Foreign Ministry said there were “no indications” that the detained suspects had links to other cells; Interior Minister Mazin al-Farrayeh said investigations were ongoing.

NBC News - Jordan’s air force carried out the strikes against groups in Syria.

NBC News - Jordan’s Public Security Directorate identified the three arrested men as brothers Hazzah Zaidan Mohammad and Mishal Zaidan Mohammad, and their brother-in-law Ahmad Sami Hussein. All three were Jordanian and were taken into custody in Karak.

NBC News - Maj. Gen. Obaidallah Abd Rabbo Al-Maayta said the gunmen were “takfiri,” a term used for Sunni militants, but were not tied to an organized group: “They only represent themselves.”

NBC News - Jordanian Interior Minister Mazen Al-Faraya said the attackers acted from “a terroristic, extremist way of thinking.”

NBC News - King Abdullah II called for authorities to respond with “an iron fist” and said, “We vowed the terrorists would not escape punishment, and no proponent of dark ideologies that divide Jordanians will be tolerated.”

NBC News - Survivor and victims’ relative Khaled al-Borqan said the arrests had eased the grief of victims’ families and the Jordanian people. Survivor Fares Halaseh, an uncle of one victim, said the news brought joy but added, “We will not forget this agony for years to come.”

BBC News - Syrian health officials said five people, including women and children, were killed in a village in Syria.

WHAT:

Euronews.com - Jordan said it had intelligence about “imminent terrorist threats” before the strikes and acknowledged civilian casualties, expressing regret for “unintended casualties.”

Euronews.com - Jordan said the airstrikes killed around 20 Islamic State militants; Mohammad Al-Momani described the destroyed weapons depot as “major.”

Al Jazeera - Human Rights Watch demanded accountability after Jordanian attacks killed women and children in January 2024, saying: “Cross-border airstrikes that kill civilians demand scrutiny regardless of the threat posed by drug smuggling from southern Syria.”

Al Jazeera - Syria’s Foreign Ministry said it was in contact with Jordan to establish the circumstances of the operation and would address its aftermath while “safeguarding Syria’s security and sovereignty.”

Al Jazeera - Syria said seven people, including three children, were killed in Jordanian airstrikes; its civil defence agency reported five members of one family, including three children and a woman, killed in a strike on a tent, with three other family members injured.

Al Jazeera - A strike near Nassib killed Riyad Karrad, 80; another in northern Suwayda countryside killed Mutlaq Abu al-Khail, 60, whose body was still being recovered when the report was issued.

Al Jazeera - Syria’s emergency ministry said response teams attended four strike sites. Syrian customs authorities later closed the Nassib border crossing with Jordan.

Al Jazeera - Syria’s Foreign Ministry said it had “complete reservation” about the strikes, which it said occurred “without prior coordination or notification”; a ministry official called them a “treacherous attack.”

Al Jazeera - Jordan’s military said the operation was coordinated with Damascus, while Syria disputed that account.

NBC News - A large cache of munitions was found in the abandoned house where Jordanian forces apprehended the three men.

The Washington Post - Jordan’s air force said the strikes targeted “hideouts of terrorist organizations” in southern Syria that it said were connected to the individuals behind the church attack.

NBC News - Jordanian state media reported that the airstrikes killed and wounded “many members” of the targeted groups and destroyed several vehicles; it did not identify the groups or give the precise strike location.

NBC News - Syrian state TV reported civilian-casualty reports after Jordanian airstrikes.

NBC News - Jordanian authorities arrested three men following a dawn shootout; all three were wounded. Officials said the arrests followed the church attack, which killed nine and wounded more than two dozen people.

NBC News - Jordan declared three days of mourning for the victims.

WHERE:

Al Jazeera - Syrian strikes were reported in Deraa and Suwayda countryside, including al-Taff in northeastern Deraa, farms near Nassib, Muzayrib in western Deraa, and Shuhayb in northern Suwayda.

NBC News - The church attack occurred at a Greek Orthodox church in Karak, about 55 miles south of Amman, Jordan. It happened during a funeral; Karak has a minority Christian population.

NBC News - Syrian state TV reported airstrikes south of al-Masmiyah village in Syria’s southern Daraa province.

BBC News - The village where five people were killed was in Syria.

WHY:

Euronews.com - Mohammad Al-Momani said the strikes followed intelligence indicating “imminent terrorist threats.”

NBC News - Jordan carried out the strikes in retaliation for the church attack. No group immediately claimed responsibility, and the attackers’ motive remained unknown.

NBC News - King Abdullah II said the response was directed at outlaws of Islam and anyone seeking to undermine Jordanian unity.

HOW:

Al Jazeera - Jordan’s Armed Forces said Royal Air Force fighter jets destroyed terrorist sites in southeastern Syria.

(UPDATED October 28, 2026 10:00 UTC)

Jordan’s air force struck targets in southern Syria after a church attack in Karak killed nine people and wounded more than two dozen; Jordan said intelligence pointed to imminent threats and reported destroying a major weapons depot and killing more than 20 Islamic State operatives. Syrian officials said the strikes killed seven people, including three children, and injured others, while disputing Jordan’s claim that the operation was coordinated with Damascus. Jordan arrested three men in connection with the church attack, and King Abdullah II vowed a forceful response as the investigation continued.

(UPDATED October 28, 2026 01:18 UTC)

ISIL claimed responsibility for the church attack in Karak, where nine people were killed and more than two dozen wounded, and Jordanian authorities arrested three Jordanian suspects, all of them injured in a dawn shootout. Jordan’s air force then struck sites in southern Syria that it said were linked to those behind the attack, while Syria disputed Jordan’s claim that the operation was coordinated and reported civilian deaths, including five people in one village. Jordan said the strikes targeted terrorist groups, and King Abdullah called for a forceful response as investigations into the attack continue.

(UPDATED October 27, 2026 19:06 UTC)

Jordanian authorities arrested three wounded men after a gun attack at a Greek Orthodox church in Karak killed nine people and injured more than two dozen; officials said the suspects were not tied to an organized group, and a large cache of munitions was found in an abandoned house. Jordan’s air force then struck sites in southern Syria that it said were connected to those behind the attack, reporting that many members of the targeted groups were killed or wounded and several vehicles destroyed. Syrian health officials said five people, including women and children, were killed in a village, while Jordan’s King Abdullah called for a forceful response and the country declared three days of mourning.

(UPDATED October 27, 2026 10:07 UTC)

Jordan arrested three wounded men after a gun attack at a Greek Orthodox church in Karak killed nine people and injured more than two dozen; the suspects are brothers and their brother-in-law, and officials say they were not linked to an organized group. In retaliation, Jordan’s air force struck groups in Syria, killing and wounding many people and destroying vehicles, while Syrian officials reported that five people, including women and children, died in a village. King Abdullah II called for a forceful response, and Jordan declared three days of mourning for the church attack victims.