Latest news with #Dweila
LBCI
4 hours ago
- Politics
- LBCI
Syria state media reports casualties in suicide attack on Damascus church
Syrian state media reported a suicide attack on a Damascus church on Sunday that caused casualties, as AFP correspondents at the scene saw first responders transporting people from the site. "A suicide attacker detonates an explosive belt inside the Saint Elias church in the Dweila area of Damascus," state TV reported, adding that security forces cordoned off the area. State news agency SANA reported unspecified casualties. AFP correspondents at the scene saw destruction at the church, with shattered wood from fittings and pews, icons on the ground and pools of blood. AFP
SBS Australia
4 hours ago
- Politics
- SBS Australia
At least 20 killed in suicide bomb attack on Damascus church, Syrian officials say
Suicide bombing at Damascus church kills 20 in first major attack since the Assad regime was toppled. Syria's interior ministry blamed a member of the Islamic State group for the attack. Attack shows ISIS remains a threat despite years of counterterrorism and territorial losses. At least 20 people were killed and dozens injured when a suicide bomber blew himself up at the Mar Elias Church in the Dweila neighbourhood of Syria's capital Damascus, health authorities and security sources said. It was the first suicide bombing in Damascus since Bashar al-Assad was toppled by an Islamist-led rebel insurgency in December. Syria's interior ministry said the suicide bomber was a member of Islamic State. He entered the church on Sunday, opened fire and then detonated his explosive vest, a ministry statement added. A security source, speaking on condition of anonymity, said two men were involved in the attack, including the one who blew himself up. Islamic State has been behind several attempted attacks on churches in Syria since Assad's fall, but this was the first to succeed, another security source told Reuters news agency. Syria's state news agency cited the health ministry as saying that 52 people were also injured in the blast. A livestream from the site by Syria's civil defence, the White Helmets, showed scenes of destruction from inside the church, including a bloodied floor and shattered pews and masonry. Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa, who led the offensive against Assad before taking over in January for a transitional phase, has repeatedly said he will protect minorities. "We unequivocally condemn the abhorrent terrorist suicide bombing at the Mar Elias Greek Orthodox Church in Damascus, Syria," the Greek foreign ministry said in a statement. "We demand that the Syrian transitional authorities take immediate action to hold those involved accountable and implement measures to guarantee the safety of Christian communities and all religious groups, allowing them to live without fear." Islamic State had previously targeted religious minorities, including a major attack on Shiite pilgrims in Sayeda Zainab in 2016 — one of the most notorious bombings during Assad's rule. The latest assault underscores the group's continued ability to exploit security gaps despite the collapse of its territorial control and years of counterterrorism efforts.
New York Times
5 hours ago
- Politics
- New York Times
Suicide Bombing at Damascus Church Kills at Least 20
A suicide bomber attacked a Greek Orthodox Church service in Syria's capital on Sunday, killing at least 20 people and underscoring the new government's challenge to maintain stability after more than a decade of civil war. The Syrian authorities said the assailant had opened fire on congregants at the Mar Elias Church in Dweila, a neighborhood of Damascus, before detonating an explosive vest. More than 50 people were wounded. The attacker appeared to have ties to the Islamic State, the extremist group that once controlled large areas of Syria, the authorities said. It was the first known suicide bombing in the capital since December, when a rebel coalition ousted Syria's iron-fisted president, Bashar al-Assad, and took power. Syria's new leadership has vowed to restore order and has sought to reassure embattled religious minorities. But sectarian tensions have festered, and for months, the United Nations and U.S. officials have warned that remnants of the Islamic State are seeking to exploit the collapse of the Assad regime to regroup. The Syrian authorities say they have foiled repeated attack plots in recent months, including some targeting Christian sites. On Sunday, witnesses to the church bombing described a scene of carnage, with ambulances and local residents rushing to Mar Elias to help. Photos circulated by the state news media showed charred and blood-splattered floors, with shrapnel peppered across the church's walls. Want all of The Times? Subscribe.
Yahoo
6 hours ago
- Politics
- Yahoo
Suicide bombing at Damascus church kills 20, authorities say
At least 20 people have been killed and 52 others wounded in a suicide bombing at a church on the outskirts of Damascus, Syria's interior ministry has said. The attacker entered Mar Elias Church in Dweila during a service and opened fire with a weapon before detonating an explosive vest, the ministry said in a statement. It added that he was affiliated with the jihadist group Islamic State (IS). There was no immediate claim from the group itself. The Syrian Civil Defence - whose emergency teams are widely known as the White Helmets - posted photos and video from inside the church showing a heavily damaged altar, pews covered in broken glass and a bloodied floor. One person told AFP news agency outside Mar Elias that "someone entered carrying a weapon" and began shooting. "[People] tried to stop him before he blew himself up," he added. A worker at a nearby shop said: "We saw fire in the church and the remains of wooden benches thrown all the way to the entrance." Security forces have condoned off the area around the church and are investigating the attack, according to the interior ministry. It was the first such attack in Damascus since Bashar al-Assad was overthrown by rebel forces in December. Interim President Ahmed al-Sharaa - whose Sunni Islamist group, Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), is a former al-Qaeda affiliate in Syria - has repeatedly promised to protect religious and ethnic minorities. However, the country has been rocked by two waves of deadly sectarian violence in recent months.
Bloomberg
6 hours ago
- Politics
- Bloomberg
IS Suicide Bomber Kills 13, Injures 53 Inside Damascus Church
A suicide bomber hailing from the extremist group Islamic State blew himself up inside a church in Damascus, a deadly attack that adds to Syria's sectarian woes as the war-torn country struggles to contain violence following the ouster of President Bashar al-Assad in December. Thirteen civilians were killed and 53 were injured in the attack that targeted Mar Elias Church in the Syrian capital's Dweila district, the heath ministry told state-news agency Sana. Wearing an explosive vest, the assailant opened fire before detonating himself, according to the interior ministry which confirmed his affiliation to IS.
