AMMAN — Public Security Directorate (PSD) Director Maj. Gen. Obeidallah Maaytah on Monday said that the three suspected terrorists who attacked a church in Karak, killing nine people on Friday, acted alone.

 

“The three men did not plot the act and were behind the funeral when they decided to launch their attack,” Obeidallah told reporters during a press conference at the interior ministry.

 

The police chief was talking during a joint press conference that was also attended by Interior Minister Mazeh Faraya and Government Communication Minister and Official Government Spokesperson Mohammad Momani.

 

Obeidallah told reporters that initial investigations indicated that the three suspects, including two brothers and a relative, “conducted the attack as a result of a convergence of ideas among them”.

 

“It stemmed from their own beliefs, their deviation from the correct path, and their adoption of extremist ideology and terrorism,” the police chief added.

 

Earlier in the day, government and police officials announced the arrest of three suspects in connection with Friday’s attack on a church in Karak that left nine dead and over 30 wounded.

 

On Friday, gunmen approached a church in the village of Hmoud and opened fire on people who were attending a funeral service.

 

Seven people were killed instantly and dozens were injured. Two more people died the following day.

 

Obeidallah told reporters that the three suspects left in one vehicle and “a special team from several security agencies was tasked with following up the incident and was able to locate them using sophisticated equipment and evidence from the scene”.

 

He added that security forces took the necessary measures to isolate the area and secure its perimeter by establishing checkpoints, deploying patrols, and utilising drones.

 

“Our security teams worked continuously for three days to comb the area of the attack, including small villages as well as rugged mountainous terrain and valleys, until they were able to locate them in a deserted building,” the police chief said.

 

“The three suspected terrorists barricaded themselves inside the abandoned building and refused to surrender, opening fire on the security force that surrounded them,” Obeidallah said.

 

The security force applied the rules of engagement, eventually gaining control of the situation and apprehending all three individuals, who sustained injuries during the encounter, he added.

 

The three suspects were taken to the hospital for further medical intervention, Obeidallah said.

 

No one was injured from the arresting force, according to Obeidallah.

 

The police chief identified the suspects as: Hazaa Zeidan Mohammad (the plotter), Mashal Zeidan Mohammad and Ahmad Sami Hussein.

 

“They are all from the same area and lived next to the attacked church,” he added.

 

Upon searching their hideout, the arresting force found a collection of firearms and ammunition, he maintained.

 

The arrest of the three suspects does not mark the end of the operation, Obeidallah said, adding that “the state remains committed to completing the investigations, uncovering all the circumstances surrounding the crime, and holding accountable—in accordance with the law—anyone proven to have been involved in planning, inciting, assisting, or facilitating it”.

 

Also speaking during the press conference, Faraya said that His Majesty King Abdullah said during his visit to the injured in the hospital by saying: "We shall show them".

 

Today, Faraya maintained, “our response was: "We have shown them, Your Majesty."

 

Faraya said Jordan lived three difficult days that ended with arresting the perpetrators.

 

“Today we are strong with the arrests and can assure our citizens that justice will prevail in the end and the attackers will get their appropriate punishment under the law,” the interior minister stressed.

 

Faraya added that the “church attack was the product of an extremist ideology that is alien to the values and morals of the Jordanian people".

 

“We need to work on addressing the root cause of extremist ideologies so we do not experience a similar incident in the future,” Faraya said.

 

Momani also spoke during Monday’s press conference, saying that Friday’s attack is a “major turning point for Jordan in terms of efforts to fight and confront takfiri (extremist) ideology through security, intellectual, and societal means”.

 

“Under the directives of King Abdullah, during a meeting of the National Security Council, the campaign to root out such ideology and extremism across all sectors remains ongoing,” Momani stressed.

 

This, Momani maintained, “will be achieved by reviewing policies to combat extremist ideology and eliminating its root sources through a systematic plan,” Momani said.

 

“Confronting extremism is a comprehensive and ongoing national responsibility, one shared by government, religious, educational, media, and societal institutions,” Momani added.