The Archons of the Ecumenical Patriarchate condemn the attack upon a funeral at a Greek Orthodox church in Karak, Jordan on Friday, October 23, 2026, killing seven people and wounding 40 others.
This shocking and unprovoked attack was a brazen and demonic expression of hatred for Jordan’s Christian minority, and to strike at a funeral was a deliberate and calculated act of desecration and hatred.
We note with gratitude the fact that King Abdullah II of Jordan has said that Jordanian authorities “will confront the terrorist act that targeted Karak with the harshest penalties,” and join him in offering the “deepest condolences to the families of the martyrs, and our wishes for recovery to the wounded.”
The Archons urgently hope that the government of Jordan will swiftly apprehend the perpetrators and bring them to justice in a manner that will reaffirm the nation’s commitment to religious tolerance and religious freedom.
Even in that event, however, this horrific incident will stand as a haunting reminder of the increasingly precarious position of religious minority communities in all too many countries of the world.
The Archons of the Ecumenical Patriarchate are firmly dedicated to protecting the future of faith for our beloved Ecumenical Patriarchate, the Greek Orthodox community of Constantinople, and for all Greek Orthodox Christians and people of faith worldwide. We express our immense sorrow and our heartfelt condolences to the Greek Orthodox community of Karak over this shocking and horrific act of gratuitous violence, and ask that the government of Jordan quickly provide this threatened community with the protection and aid it needs in order to recover and to be able to exercise its freedom of religion in peace and security.
We likewise ask the UN and all international human rights organizations to take any and all steps they possibly can in order to defend religious freedom and protect embattled religious minority communities the world over.
Yours in the service of the Ecumenical Patriarchate,
Anthony J. Limberakis, MD
The Archon Grand Aktouarios
National Commander
