Suicide Bombing in Damascus Church Claims Twenty Lives

(MENAFN) On Sunday, an ISIS-linked suicide bomber unleashed gunfire inside Mar Elias Church in eastern Damascus before detonating himself, resulting in at least 20 deaths and 52 injuries, the Syrian Health Ministry confirmed.

According to the Syrian Civil Defense, ambulances rushed the wounded to nearby medical facilities while Internal Security Forces swiftly cordoned off the church area to secure the scene and prevent further harm.

Brigadier General Osama Ataka, the head of Damascus’ internal security, personally visited the site as investigators commenced their preliminary inquiry into the terrorist incident, according to a Syrian news agency.

While the Syrian Interior Ministry implicated ISIS in orchestrating the bombing, no group has formally taken responsibility for the attack at Mar Elias Church.

This violent event follows closely on the heels of a significant operation announced by Syria’s Interior Ministry on May 26, which revealed the dismantling of ISIS cells in rural Damascus.
Authorities confiscated both light and medium-caliber weapons during that raid.

Since the collapse of the Assad regime, Syrian security agencies have actively pursued suspects linked to various crimes, human rights abuses, and terrorism.

Bashar al-Assad, Syria’s longtime leader for nearly 25 years, fled to Russia in December, marking the end of the Baath Party’s decades-long rule that began in 1963.

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