The toll from twin auto bombs that rocked the outskirts of the Syrian city of Sweida has risen to 26 people, including a prominent Druze cleric known for criticising Syria’s regime, a monitor said.
Advertisement
The UK-based -called Syrian Observatory for Human Rights also said an attack by armed men against a government building in the city killed six security forces following the double blasts on Friday.
Balous, who was a strong supporter of rebels trying to topple Assad, died Friday in one of two consecutive vehicle bomb explosions, including one near the National Hospital in Sweida city. His supporters have blamed the Syrian government for his death.
The conflict in Syria, which began as peaceful protests against the regime of Assad and escalated into a civil war, has killed more than 240,000 people.
The cleric’s death sparked angry protests. The city had witnessed large rallies in the days before the explosions against the failure of the government to provide basic services. Meanwhile, unconfirmed reports suggesting that Russian Federation was planning to expand its military support for Syrian President Bashar Assad prompted a warning from the USA that such actions could lead to a confrontation with coalition forces.
Sweida is the heartland of Syria’s Druze minority, which made up around three per cent of the country’s pre-war population of 23 million.
Syrian authorities have detained a member of Al-Qaeda affiliate Al-Nusra Front who admitted the group’s responsibility for a double bomb attack in the country’s Druze heartland, state media says. Al-Qaida considers the Shiite and any offshoot as heretics.
Advertisement
Abdul-Hai said those in Sweida still can’t access the Internet, four days after it first was cut amid wide ranging anti-government protests.
