The Jordanian government has initiated a reform of several laws related to terrorism, which includes toughening penalties for perpetrators of these crimes, raising minimum sentences from five to ten years in prison, and establishing penalties of up to 15 years or even the death penalty in certain cases.
The decision was adopted during Sunday’s cabinet meeting, chaired by Prime Minister Jafar Hassan, on the same day that the State Security Court held its second hearing on the terrorist attack against St. George’s Church in Hamud, where nine people died at the end of October.
The Council of Ministers agreed to accelerate the preparation of legislative amendments and send them to the House of Representatives within two weeks for debate and approval.
The reform package also foresees doubling penalties for those who cooperate, incite, or provide assistance to those responsible for terrorist crimes, as well as toughening punishments for spreading hate speech and other behaviors linked to terrorism.
مضاعفة الحد الأدنى للعقوبات في قضايا الإرهاب الواردة في قانون منع الإرهاب من 5 سنوات إلى 10 سنوات، وإلى 15 سنة في بعض الحالات، وتصل إلى الإعدام.
— Prime Ministry of Jordan (@PrimeMinistry) November 8, 2026
Among the main modifications is also the accumulation of penalties corresponding to each terrorism-related crime, so that sentences are served separately, instead of applying only the maximum penalty, as established by current legislation.
The amendments also contemplate modifying the calculation of the prison year for those convicted of terrorism, which would go from nine to 12 months, and excluding them from the benefits provided for in Article 34 of the Law on Penitentiary and Rehabilitation Centers, which allows release after serving three-quarters of the sentence.
In this regard, the Executive decided that, with effect from this Sunday, people already serving sentences for terrorism offenses cannot benefit from the exception for good conduct either, so the prison year will be computed as twelve months instead of nine.
The project also incorporates mandatory precautionary measures for those convicted of terrorism once they have served their sentences, with the aim of keeping them under supervision and security control for the period determined by the court.
Among the planned measures are electronic surveillance, exhaustive monitoring, and house arrest, in addition to other mechanisms aimed at reducing security risks and protecting society.
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