A suicide bomber detonated an explosives vest inside a church in Syria’s capital on Sunday, killing at least 22 and injuring 63 others, Syrian Health Ministry said. The attack took place on the outskirts of Damascus at the Mar Elias Church, according to state media SANA.
Suicide Bombing At Damascus Church Kills At Least 22
The attack occurred in Dweila, which is located on the outskirts of Damascus while people were praying in the church.
The man first opened fire while the mass was ongoing before detonating the vest. The attacker was allegedly affiliated with the jihadist group Islamic State (IS), as per the Interior Ministry.
Videos have surfaced from the site of the attack showing heavy damage to the altar along with blood spattered across the wall. Photos circulated by the Syria Civil Defence showed the church’s interior area in ruins, with pews covered in debris and blood.
Witness Lawrence Maamari told AFP news agency that "someone entered [the church] from outside carrying a weapon" and began shooting. People "tried to stop him before he blew himself up", he added.
The incident marks the first such attack in Syria since the Islamist-led rebel forces overthrew Bashar al-Assad's government in December. The interim government led by Ahmad al-Sharaa is struggling to exert its authority in the region, with reports of sleeper cells of extremist groups functioning in the country.
The Syrian Information Minister released a statement on X stating that “This cowardly act goes against the civic values that bring us together.”
“We will not back down from our commitment to equal citizenship and we also affirm the state’s pledge to exert all its efforts to combat criminal organisations and to protect society from all attacks threatening its safety,” he added further.
US special envoy for Syria Tom Barrack said that "These terrible acts of cowardice have no place in the new tapestry of integrated tolerance and inclusion that Syrians are weaving."
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