DAMASCUS: Eight people were killed in an explosion at a mosque of the Alawite minority sect in the Syrian city of Homs on Friday (Dec 26), Syrian state news agency SANA said.
An ultra-conservative Sunni Syrian group known as Saraya Ansar al-Sunnah said on its Telegram channels that it carried out the attack. The group previously claimed responsibility for a suicide bombing at a Damascus church in June that killed 20 people.
SANA cited Syrian Health Ministry official Najib al-Naasan as saying 18 others were wounded and that the figures were not final, indicating they could rise.
The city’s press office said an explosive device had detonated inside the Imam Ali bin Abi Talib mosque and that security forces had cordoned off the area.
Local official Issam Naameh told Reuters the blast occurred during Friday noon prayers.
The Supreme Alawite Islamic Council, a body that says it represents Alawites in Syria and abroad, condemned what it called a systematic campaign of killings, forced displacement, detentions and incitement against Alawites for more than a year. It accused the Damascus authorities of responsibility, and said continued attacks risk driving the country toward collapse.