Jordan strikes militant groups in Syria after church attack kills nine

Jordan launched retaliatory airstrikes in southern Syria on October 26, 2026, targeting militant hideouts linked to an attack on a Greek Orthodox church in Karak that killed nine people. Earlier that day, Jordanian forces arrested three primary suspects following a shootout. Syrian authorities reported up to seven civilian deaths, including women and children, and closed the crucial Nassib border crossing while denying Jordan's claims of prior military coordination.

Jordanian airstrikes in southern Syria

• ▪The Jordanian air force conducted airstrikes on October 26, 2026 against terrorist group hideouts in southern Syria after linking the October 23, 2026 Karak church attackers to groups operating there
• ▪Syrian officials and civil defense reported that the October 26, 2026 Jordanian airstrikes killed between five and seven people in Daraa and Suweyda provinces, including women and children
• ▪Syria's civil defense service stated that five members of one family, including a woman and three children, were killed when a Jordanian airstrike hit a tent in the village of Al Tai in Daraa Province

Karak church attack and official response

• ▪King Abdullah II ordered Jordanian security forces to respond with an iron fist against those responsible for the October 23, 2026 Karak church attack
• ▪Three gunmen opened fire on mourners during a funeral procession at the Hamoud Greek Orthodox Church in Karak governorate, Jordan, leaving nine people dead and dozens injured
• ▪Jordan declared three days of national mourning following the attack on the Greek Orthodox church in Karak governorate
• ▪No group has claimed responsibility for the October 23, 2026 Karak church attack, though Jordanian authorities described the three suspects arrested after the attack as having an extremist 'takfiri' ideology

Arrest of Karak attack suspects

• ▪Jordanian Interior Minister Mazen al-Faraya stated on October 26, 2026 that there was no indication of external contacts or foreign collaboration involving the three suspects arrested over the October 23, 2026 Karak church attack
• ▪Jordanian security forces arrested Jordanian citizens Ahmad Sami Hussein, Mish'al Zaidan Muhammad, and Hazza' Zaidan Muhammad following a dawn shootout at an abandoned house
• ▪Major General Obeidallah Al-Maaytah stated that all three suspects were injured during the October 26, 2026 shootout in Karak, with large caches of weapons and ammunition seized from the scene

Dispute over airstrike coordination

• ▪The Syrian government denied prior coordination or notification regarding the October 26, 2026 Jordanian airstrikes and announced an investigation into the strikes
• ▪The Jordanian military stated that its October 26, 2026 airstrikes in southern Syria were conducted in coordination with the Syrian government

Closure of Nassib border crossing

• ▪The Nassib border crossing serves as Jordan's only commercial and passenger border crossing with Syria
• ▪Syria closed the Nassib border crossing with Jordan following the October 26, 2026 Jordanian airstrikes in southern Syria, suspending traffic in both directions