Syrian jihadist group, affiliated with al Qaeda, behind double attack in Damascus
The Sunni extremist movement Hayat Tahrir al-Sham claimed responsibility for the attack of March 10; at least 40 victims, about 120 wounded. Two busloads of Iraqi Shiite pilgrims targeted. The attack is a "message to Iran" for supporting Assad. New round of talks in Astana mediated by Tehran, Moscow and Ankara.
Damascus (AsiaNews / Agencies) - A Syrian jihadist group affiliated with al Qaeda, has claimed responsibility for the double suicide bombing that struck the capital Damascus on March 10, killing at least 40 people. The Sunni extremist movement Hayat Tahrir al-Sham stressed that the attack was "a message to Iran" for the support provided by Tehran to Syrian President Bashar al-Assad.
According to reports from the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, an NGO based in London with a dense network of sources in the area, most of the victims were Iraqi pilgrims. The group, which has ties to the opposition, the death toll is 74, but there has been no official confirmation.
The Iraqi Government adds that at least 120 people are wounded.
The double attack was launched with a remote controlled bomb and a suicide bomber who detonated himself, as the buses loaded with pilgrims passed. The double explosion, a rare episode for the Syrian capital, took place near the cemetery of Bab al-Saghir, which is home to a Shiite mausoleum.
Hayat Tahrir al-Sham [Organization for the Liberation of the Levant, ed] is a new terrorist group, formed by exiles from Jabhat Fateh al-Sham (the former Nusra Front, an offshoot of al Qaeda in Syria) and four other smaller groups.
Since December 30 last year in Syria, a nation battered by six years of bloody civil war that has left more than 310 thousand deaths and millions of refugees, a fragile truce promoted by Russia, Turkey and Iran is in effect. However, outbreaks of violence and sporadic attacks continue to claim victims.
Most of the Damascus territory is under the control of President Assad, although there are several rebel groups in some outlying districts. In January, a double suicide bombing in the Kafr Sousa district claimed at least 10 victims. Jabhat Fateh al-Sham jihadi militias were behind the attack.
Meanwhile on the diplomatic front final preparations are being completed for the third Astana meeting, scheduled in the coming days, despite the requests for referral by the opposition groups. "We await the confirmation of some parts - said Kairat Abdrakhmanov, Kazakhstan's Foreign Minister.
The rebels accuse the government and the militias supported by Iran, Assad's allies, of continuing to bomb areas in the hands of the opposition in Damascus, Homs, Deraa et Idlib.
Two rounds of Astana talks for peace have already been held, on January 23-24 and mid-February. Moscow, Tehran and Ankara want to consolidate the truce signed after the regular army wrested Aleppo. The UN special envoy for Syria Staffan de Mistura emphasized that this appointment should lay the foundation for the "maintenance of the ceasefire, the signing of immediate steps to rebuild trust and practical issues in the fight against terrorism."
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