Security officer attacked and killed near Sri Lankan Embassy in Jordan's capital

CAIRO — An assailant attacked and killed a security officer near the Sri Lankan Embassy in Jordan’s capital Amman on Thursday, in what Jordanian authorities described as a terrorist act.

The attack comes weeks after gunmen opened fire during a funeral at a church in southern Jordan, killing nine people and wounding dozens more.

Jordan’s Public Security Directorate said that a member of its forces was assaulted with a sharp object and died “in a cowardly terrorist attack.” It said a preliminary investigation indicated the attacker had been “planning to commit the terrorist act against the officers.”

Jordan’s state-run Al-Mamlaka TV reported that the assailant, who has been arrested, attempted to seize the weapon from the security officer who was killed. A second security officer intervened, and both the assailant and the second officer sustained injuries, Al-Mamlaka said.

The Sri Lankan Embassy confirmed the attack took place in its vicinity, but didn't elaborate.

Jordanian government spokesperson Mohamed al-Momani wrote on X that the prime minister was “closely monitoring the response of the security services to this incident.” Attacking security personnel while on duty is an “assault on the dignity of the state,” he added.

Jordan’s King Abdullah II said in a statement that his nation “will not waver in its fight against terrorism and extremism."