Jordan hits Syria after five civilian deaths reported in retaliatory strikes

Tensions between Jordan and Syria escalated on Monday as the Jordanian air force conducted airstrikes in retaliation for Friday's attack on a Greek Orthodox church in Karak. The church strike during a funeral killed nine people and wounded more than two dozen others, prompting a military response that has now claimed its own civilian toll across the border.

Syrian health officials in the southern province of Daraa, where the strikes occurred, reported that at least five civilians died. The director of health in Daraa told Sana, the Syrian national news agency, that the dead included women, children, and a 65-year-old man. Jordanian authorities stated that their operation resulted in the killing and wounding of many members of terrorist groups and the destruction of several vehicles. The Jordanian air force did not name the specific groups targeted or provide precise coordinates for the strikes.

Disagreements over the execution of the operation have emerged between the two governments. Jordan's armed forces claimed the airstrikes were conducted in coordination with Damascus. In a contradictory account, the Syrian government said it launched an investigation into the Jordanian attacks. Syria emphasized the importance of field and security coordination in border areas in a statement, suggesting the joint effort was not seamless.

Jordanian authorities arrested three men on Monday morning following a dawn shootout in Karak, a city roughly 55 miles south of Amman. The suspects are identified as brothers Hazzah Zaidan Mohammad and Mishal Zaidan Mohammad, and their brother-in-law Ahmad Sami Hussein. All three are Jordanian citizens. Maj Gen Obaidallah Abd Rabbo Al-Maayta, the chief of the Public Security Directorate, described the gunmen as takfiri, a term for Sunni militants, but stated they were not tied to any organized group. A large cache of munitions was found in the abandoned house where the men were apprehended.

The arrest has provided some relief to the victims' families, though the grief remains deep. Khaled al-Borqan, a survivor of the attack and relative of three of the deceased, told Al-Mamlaka that the arrests eased the grief of the Jordanian people. Fares Halaseh, an uncle of one of the victims and also a survivor, said the news brought joy despite the pain. He added that the agony would not be forgotten for years. King Abdullah II ordered authorities to respond with an iron fist against outlaws of Islam, while Interior Minister Mazen al-Faraya warned that similar incidents would recur if the extremist mindset driving the attack was not resolved.