Civil Defence teams in action at the Imam Ali ibn Abi Talib Mosque after the explosion during Friday prayers.
At least five people died and 21 were wounded in a blast that struck a mosque in an Alawite neighbourhood of the Homs province in Syria on Friday, according to local officials.
Homs- At least five people were killed in an explosion at a mosque of the Alawite minority sect in the Syrian city of Homs on Friday, Syrian state news agency SANA said.
SANA cited Syrian Health Ministry official Najib al-Naasan as saying 21 others were wounded and that the figures were a preliminary toll, indicating they could rise.
Homs city’s press office said an explosive device had detonated inside the Imam Ali bin Abi Talib mosque and that security forces had cordoned off the area.
Local official Issam Naameh told Reuters the blast took place during Friday noon prayers, typically the busiest time for mosques.
Syrian state media SANA published footage of rescuers and security forces examining debris splayed across the mosque’s green carpet. There was no immediate claim of responsibility for the attack.
Syria has been rocked by several episodes of sectarian violence since longtime leader Bashar al-Assad, an Alawite, was ousted by a rebel offensive last year and replaced by a government led by members of the Sunni Muslim majority.
Explosion hit Imam Ali ibn Abi Talib Mosque during Friday prayers in Homs province
Earlier this month, two American soldiers and a civilian interpreter were killed in central Syria by a member of Syrian security forces who was described by the authorities as a suspected member of the Islamic State group.
Like Ahmed al Sharaa, the interim president of Syria , many of the rebels that joined the Syrian government Security forces after ousting Assad came from al Qaeda or ISIS
(FRANCE 24 with Reuters)
Update: The death toll rose to 8 according to Xinhua