Mosque bombing in Syria kills eight, injures 18
Officials said that at least eight people were killed and 18 people were injured in a bomb attack on a mosque in Homs, Syria, during Friday prayers.
Footage published by the state-run Syrian Arab News Agency showed blood on the mosque’s carpets, holes in the walls, shattered windows and fire damage.
Imam Ali bin Abi Talib Mosque is located in the Vadi al-Zehab neighborhood, where the Alawite minority is in majority, in Homs, the third largest city of Syria.
SANA, citing a security source, said that preliminary investigations showed that explosives were placed inside the mosque.
Authorities were searching for the perpetrators of the attack.
In the statement made by the Syrian Ministry of Internal Affairs, it was stated that a security cordon was placed around the mosque.
Tensions have flared in several parts of Syria in recent weeks as long-standing sectarian, ethnic and political fault lines continue to destabilize the country, even as large-scale fighting has subsided.
The country has experienced multiple waves of sectarian conflict since the ouster of President Bashar al-Assad last year.
Assad, himself an Alawite, fled the country to Russia.
Members of his sect were subjected to repression.
An ambush on security forces by Assad supporters in March triggered days of violence that resulted in the deaths of hundreds of people, mostly Alawites.
Local authorities condemned Friday’s attack, saying it took place “in the context of repeated desperate attempts to undermine security and stability and create chaos among the Syrian people.”
In the statement made by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, “Syria reiterates its determined stance in the fight against all forms and manifestations of terrorism.” statements were included.
“The remnants of the old regime, ISIS militants and collaborators are united in one goal: to block the path of the new state by undermining stability, threatening civil peace and eroding the common coexistence and common destiny of Syrians throughout history,” the Syrian information minister said in a post on channel X.
The governments of neighboring countries such as Saudi Arabia, Jordan and Lebanon also condemned the attack.
Lebanese President Joseph Aoun reaffirmed “Lebanon’s support for Syria in the fight against terrorism” in a statement.
On Monday, intermittent clashes broke out between Syrian government forces and Kurdish-led fighters, the Syrian Democratic Forces, in mixed neighborhoods in northern Aleppo, forcing schools and public institutions to temporarily close and civilians to seek shelter indoors.
Amid ongoing efforts to de-escalate tensions, both sides declared a ceasefire late in the evening.
