 "Homs mosque explosion kills 8; Syria calls it 'desperate attempt' to destabilise country")
At least 8 people were killed and 18 others injured in an explosion at an Alawite mosque in the Syrian city of Homs on Friday, according to a Reuters report, citing state media.
Syrian state news agency SANA cited Health Ministry official Najib al-Naasan, noting that the figures were preliminary and could rise.
The blast took place inside the Imam Ali bin Abi Talib mosque, according to Homs city’s press office, which added that security forces had cordoned off the area.
Local official Issam Naameh told Reuters that the explosion took place during Friday noon prayers, a typically crowded time at mosques.
Syrian state media SANA published footage of rescuers and security forces examining debris splayed across the mosque’s green carpet.
An Islamist militant group claimed responsibility for the bombing of the mosque.
According to an AFP report, in a statement on Telegram, the Saraya Ansar al-Sunna said its fighters “detonated a number of explosive devices” in the Imam Ali Bin Abi Talib Mosque.
The group was formed after the ouster of ruler Bashar al-Assad, who is a member of the Alawite community. The militant group had claimed responsibility for a Damascus church bombing in June.
Syria has been rocked by several episodes of sectarian violence since longtime leader Bashar al-Assad, an Alawite, was ousted by a rebel offensive last year and replaced by a government led by members of the Sunni Muslim majority.
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View AllEarlier this month, two American soldiers and a civilian interpreter were killed in central Syria by an attacker described by the authorities as a suspected member of the Islamic State, a violent Sunni Muslim group.
Meanwhile, Syria’s foreign ministry called the deadly bombing a “desperate attempt” to destabilise the country, vowing to hold the perpetrators accountable.
In a statement, the ministry condemned “this cowardly criminal act”, saying it came “in the context of repeated desperate attempts to undermine security and stability and spread chaos among the Syrian people”.
The ministry reiterated its “firm stance in combating terrorism in all its forms”, stressing that “such crimes will not deter the Syrian state from continuing its efforts to consolidate security, protect citizens, and hold those involved accountable”.
With inputs from agencies
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