Damascus: At least 15 people were killed on Sunday in a suicide bombing at the Mar Elias Church in the Dweila area of Damascus, the capital of Syria, according to security sources. This is the first such attack inside the city since President Bashar al-Assad was removed from power in December following an Islamist-led rebellion.
Syria’s interior ministry said the attacker was a member of the Islamic State. He reportedly entered the church, opened fire on worshippers, and then detonated an explosive vest. A security official, speaking anonymously, said that two attackers were involved, but only one carried out the bombing, Reuters reported.
🚨🇸🇾BREAKING: CHURCH BLAST IN SYRIA – WITNESSES SAY SUICIDE BOMBER STRUCK
A Sunday service turned into chaos as an explosion ripped through Mar Elias Church in Damascus.
Witnesses say a suicide bomber detonated inside.
No official word yet from Syrian security. Just silence… https://t.co/oG8rKROX1a pic.twitter.com/ETgcsluJzE
— Mario Nawfal (@MarioNawfal) June 22, 2025
Church left in ruins
Syria’s state news agency, quoting the health ministry, reported a preliminary toll of nine dead and 13 injured. However, other sources put the death toll at 15. Footage shared by Syria’s civil defence group, the White Helmets, showed the inside of the church in ruins—blood stains on the floor, broken pews, and damaged walls. President Ahmed al-Sharaa, who took charge in January after leading the fight to remove Assad, has promised to protect religious minorities during Syria’s transitional period.
The bombing was the first such incident in Syria in many years and comes at a time when Damascus, now under de facto Islamist control, is trying to gain the trust of minority communities. With President Ahmad al-Sharaa still working to establish firm control across the country, fears have grown over the possible presence of extremist sleeper cells in the conflict-ridden nation.
Minister vows firm response
Syrian Information Minister Hamza Mostafa condemned the incident, describing it as a terrorist attack. “This cowardly act goes against the civic values that brings us together,” he said in a post on X, formerly Twitter. “We will to back down from our commitment to equal citizenship and we also affirm the state’s pledge to exert all its efforts to combat criminal organizations and to protect society from all attacks threatening its safety.”
