Gunman shoots at church in southern Jordan... 7 dead, 34 injured (comprehensive)

(Johannesburg = Yonhap News) Correspondent Na Confirmed = An armed gunman opened fire at a church in southern Jordan on the 23rd (local time), killing at least 7 people and injuring 34, the Jordanian government said.

According to AP, AFP, and Reuters, while a funeral was being held at the Greek Orthodox Church in Karak, about 180 km south of the capital Amman, three gunmen got out of a car and shot people with semi-automatic rifles and pistols for about five minutes.

At the time, there were about 150 to 200 people inside and outside the church, and most of the casualties were said to be in their 50s to 70s.

Authorities are tracking the fleeing suspects.

No group has yet come forward claiming responsibility for the attack.

Interior Minister Mazin Al-Faraiye said the attack was carried out by "extremists" but said it was too early to say whether it was linked to groups inside or outside Jordan.

Jordan's King Abdullah II visited Karak a few hours after the incident and comforted the bereaved families, saying, "Terrorist attacks targeting Karak will be punished most harshly."

Neighboring Lebanon's President Joseph Aoun and the Syrian Foreign Ministry issued statements comforting the bereaved families and condemning the crime, and Iraqi Foreign Minister Faud Hussein also called Jordan's Foreign Minister Ayman Safadi to express solidarity.

Karak is home to a minority Christian community in Jordan, which has a predominantly Muslim population.

Here, in December 2016, a gunman opened fire at a 12th-century Crusader fortress popular with tourists, killing 10 people, including a Canadian tourist.