An explosive planted in a taxi Thursday detonated in a Damascus suburb near a Shiite Muslim shrine, one day before the solemn holy day of Ashura, and there were reports of several casualties.
State-run Al-Ikhbariya TV said there were reports of injuries in the explosion that rocked the Sayida Zeinab suburb, but it did not elaborate. The Britain-based opposition war monitor Syrian Observatory for Human Rights reported that 10 people were killed or wounded in the explosion.
The Observatory said a woman was among those who died and that her three children were wounded. The Observatory added that the explosion took place close to positions of Iranian militias, a key ally of Syrian President Bashar Assad alongside Russia in Syria’s continuing conflict now in its 13th year.
Photos shared by Al-Ikhbariya and pro-government media show the charred taxi surrounded by large crowds of people and men in military fatigues. The area’s buildings had green, red, and black Ashura flags and banners hung.
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Several casualties were reported after an explosive detonated near a Shiite shrine in a Damascus suburb one day before the holy day of Ashura.
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In a video shared on social media, people carried two men covered in blood and dust off the ground while calling for help. The glass facades of shops nearby had shattered, while one was on fire.
The neighborhood is named after the Sayida Zeinab shrine, the granddaughter of the Prophet Muhammad. Protecting the shrine became a rallying cry for Shiite fighters backing Assad in the early years of the conflict, as it turned from an anti-government uprising into a sectarian civil war.
Ashura is the 10th day of the Islamic month of Muharram, which is one of the holiest months for Shiite Muslims. It marks the martyrdom of the Prophet Muhammad’s grandson, Imam Hussein, and his 72 companions in the battle of Karbala in the seventh century in present-day Iraq. Ashura marks the peak of the mourning procession.
The explosion is the second in the Sayida Zeinab neighborhood in the days leading to Ashura. On Tuesday, Syrian state media citing a police official said that two civilians were wounded after a motorcycle laced with explosives was detonated.
