Suicide bombing at Damascus church kills 20, authorities say

At least 20 people were killed and 52 others injured in suicide bombing in a church on the outskirts of Damascus, the Ministry of Health in Syria said.

The striker entered the church Mar Elias in Dweila during a service and opened fire with a weapon before exploding an explosive vest, according to the Interior Ministry.

This added that he was affiliated with the Islamic State (IS) jihadist group. There was no immediate complaint from the group itself.

Syrian civil defense – whose emergency teams are widely known as white helmets – have published photos and videos of the interior of the church showing a highly damaged altar, benches covered with broken glass and bloody soil.

One person told the AFP news agency outside Mar Elias that “someone entered carrying a weapon” and had started to shoot. “”[People] I tried to stop it before exploding, “he added.

A worker from a neighboring store said: “We saw fire in the church and the remains of wooden benches thrown to the entrance.”

The security forces have completed the area around the church and investigate the attack, according to the Interior Ministry.

It was the first attack of this type in Damascus since Bashar al-Assad was overthrown by rebel forces in December.

The acting president Ahmed al-Sharaa-including the Sunni Islamist group, Hayat Tahrir Al-Sham (HTS), is a former affiliate of Al-Qaeda in Syria-has repeatedly promised to protect religious and ethnic minorities.

However, the country has been shaken by two waves of fatal sectarian violence in recent months.