The heinous terrorist crime witnessed by the dear Karak Governorate is not merely an isolated act or an assault on individuals, but a heinous crime that targeted the Jordanian people, violated the sanctity of life, and claimed innocent souls in a moment of grief and farewell. It is a crime that directly clashes with Jordan’s religious, humanitarian, and national values, and its deep-rooted legacy of upholding dignity and respecting humanity.
However, the Jordan we know will remain resilient against such a crime undermining its unity, or allowing pain to create room for division. What befell our people in Karak befell every Jordanian home, and what touched our Christian brothers touched Muslims before and after them, because Jordanians have never known how to differentiate between blood and blood, or to measure grief by creed, or to make religious difference a boundary separating the nation's children. In the face of this crime, the Jordanian society stands cohesive, clinging to its brotherhood, rejecting hatred, and affirming that its unity is stronger than all attempts to tamper with it.
These are not words spoken in a moment of emotional impulse, but a firmly established truth in the history of our society and in the nature of the human relationships that have brought its people together over long generations.
I recall here, from my personal experience, something of my childhood and upbringing in the city of Salt, that city where I learned, as did others among its children, the meaning of brotherhood between Muslims and Christians as a natural practice of life, not a slogan we repeat on occasions.
We grew up among ancient Muslim and Christian clans, and since childhood, we shared neighborhoods, schools, study desks, then fields of work and public service, joys and sorrows, and all the details of daily life. None of us felt that they were living an exceptional experience in tolerance, and we did not need awareness campaigns to tell us how to coexist with each other, because we did not see difference in religion as a reason for separation in the first place.
What I knew in Salt was not a peculiarity unique to one city over others, but a microcosm of what Karak, Madaba, Fuheis, Ajloun, Amman, and all other Jordanian cities and villages knew, where the lives of Muslims and Christians blended, and their social and human relationships intertwined, until the brotherhood between them became an essential part of the society's identity and culture.
This model was not born with the modern state, nor was it the fruit of official speeches or awareness and tolerance programs, despite their importance; rather, it is an extension of deep civilizational, humanitarian, and religious roots that have struck into the history of this land for many centuries.
Jordan has embraced Christianity since its very beginnings nearly two thousand years ago, and throughout its history, it has witnessed a civilizational and humanitarian interaction between followers of religions, which has been consolidated with the succession of generations and has become part of people's conscience, customs, and traditions.
Hence, Jordanian Christians are not guests on this land, nor are they a transient group in its history; rather, they are among its original children, the descendants of the first Christians whose generations have lived on this land since the dawn of Christianity. They are authentic partners in Jordan's history and civilization, in building its modern state and institutions, in defending its homeland and serving its people, and in all the achievements realized on its soil.
Jordan has known this deep meaning of unity in the details of daily life, just as it has known it in the most difficult stations it has passed through. When our homeland was exposed to challenges and tribulations, the question was never about the religion of those standing by the homeland, but about their sincerity in belonging to it and their readiness to sacrifice for its sake.
Therefore, the crime that occurred in Karak is not only an assault on a component of the Jordanian society, but an assault on the entire society, on the system of values that preserved its unity and cohesion, and an attempt to plant fear and doubt in the souls of a people who are accustomed to their relationships being stronger than all attempts to divide them.
If the perpetrators of this crime wanted to open a door to hatred, the true Jordanian response should be with more adherence to brotherhood and unity, and the rejection of every discourse that attempts to exploit pain to incite division, or to turn religious difference into a cause for discord.
The religion we knew in our homes, schools, and society was always a source of morality, mercy, and the preservation of souls, and it was never a justification for attacking the innocent. No extremist ideology can confiscate this ancient human legacy, or hijack in the name of religion what people have built of love and trust over the centuries.
The stability, security, and unity of the Jordanian people are a national and moral responsibility that falls upon us all, and protecting it is not achieved by security measures alone, despite their necessity, but also by safeguarding our authentic social culture, protecting the human relationships that have brought Jordanians together, and passing them on to our children as we inherited them from our fathers and grandfathers.
In the face of this grave affliction, I extend to our people in Karak, to the families of the victims and their relatives, and to our Christian brothers throughout the Kingdom, my sincere feelings of grief and sympathy, affirming that what befell them befell us all, and that their pain is the pain of all of Jordan.
We have lived together on this land for long centuries, shared its bread and water, its joys and sorrows, and preserved for each other love and loyalty. These are bonds that words do not create and hate crimes do not cancel, because they are too deep to be harmed by a tampering hand, and too firmly rooted to be shaken by a moment of treachery.
May God have mercy on the innocent victims, grant their families patience and solace, grant the injured a speedy recovery, and keep Jordan dear, safe, and stable, under the shadow of its Hashemite leadership, and with the awareness and cohesion of its people.
Jordan will remain, as we have known it and as our fathers and grandfathers lived it, a homeland that accommodates everyone, where the value of a human being is not measured by their religion, but by their humanity and belonging, and what brings Muslims and Christians together in it will remain greater, deeper, and more lasting than all attempts at division.
