DWEIL’A, Syria — A suicide bomber in Syria on Sunday detonated himself inside a church full of folks, killing a minimum of 9, Syrian state media reported.
The explosion in Dweil’a within the outskirts of Damascus happened as folks have been praying contained in the Mar Elias Church. SANA, citing the Well being Ministry, mentioned that a minimum of 15 others have been wounded. Britain-based warfare monitor the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights says there have been 30 folks wounded and killed, however didn’t give actual numbers. Some native media reported that kids have been among the many casualties.
Firas Makdesi / REUTERS
The assault was the primary of its variety in Syria in years, and comes as Damascus, beneath its de facto Islamist rule, is attempting to win the help of minorities. As President Ahmad al-Sharaa struggles to exert authority throughout the nation, there have been considerations concerning the presence of sleeper cells of extremist teams within the war-torn nation.
No group instantly claimed accountability Sunday, however the Syrian Inside Ministry mentioned an extremist from the Islamic State group entered the church, fired on the folks there earlier than detonating himself with an explosives vest, echoing some witness testimonies.
A witness who recognized himself as Rawad informed The Related Press he noticed the attacker, who was accompanied by two others, who fled as he was driving close to the church.
“He was capturing on the church … he then went contained in the church and blew himself up,” he mentioned.
Firas Makdesi / REUTERS 
Syrian Info Minister Hamza Mostafa condemned the assault, calling it a terrorist assault.
“This cowardly act goes towards the civic values that brings us collectively,” he mentioned in a publish on X, previously Twitter. “We are going to to again down from our dedication to equal citizenship … and we additionally affirm the state’s pledge to exert all its efforts to fight felony organizations and to guard society from all assaults threatening its security.”
Safety forces and first responders rushed to the church. Panicked survivors wailed, as one woman fell to her knees and burst into tears. A photograph circulated by Syrian state media SANA confirmed the church’s pews lined in particles and blood.
Firas Makdesi / REUTERS 
