Militant attack kills 10, injures 27 in central Jordan

At least ten people, including a Canadian woman, have lost their lives when unidentified armed men attacked a police station and patrols in Jordan’s central province of Karak, and opened fire.

According to the reports, a security source, speaking on condition of anonymity, said the assault took place in the mountainous city of Karak, situated 140 km south of the capital Amman, when unknown gunmen fired at security personnel in a shooting spree.

The assailants later holed themselves up inside a Crusader-era castle perched on top of a hill, and started firing at police forces. The identities of the assailants were not immediately clear.

Police have managed to free 10 people, including foreign tourists, but some are still being held in the castle.

The General Security Directorate said in a statement that seven of the deceased were policemen, two were Jordanian civilians and one was a Canadian tourist. Some 27 people, including policemen, also sustained injuries in the act of violence.

Prime Minister Hani al-Mulki told the parliament that “a number of security personnel” had been killed and that security forces were laying siege to the castle.

The Canadian government later confirmed that one of its nationals had been killed as a result of the violence.

SS