PHOTO: Scene of Saturday’s double bombing in the southern Damascus suburb of Sayyeda Zeinab


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The Islamic State claimed responsibility for a double bombing near a Shia shrine in a suburb of Syria’s capital Damascus.

At least 12 people were killed and 55 wounded in Sayyeda Zeinab, south of the city, according to a police source cited by State news agency SANA.

The initial bombing was carried out by a suicide bomber who detonated an explosive belt at the entrance of the suburb. A car bomb then exploded nearby.

The Islamic State’s news agency Amaq posted a statement taking responsibility.

Prime Minister Wael al-Halqi denounced “coward terrorist acts”, which he said were “due to the accelerated victories of the Syrian army on all fronts”. He “held the terrorism sponsors, particularly Turkey, Qatar and Saudi Arabia, responsible for such brutal massacres”.

Sayyeda Zeinab has been struck by three bomb attacks this year. The shrine is a site of pilgrimage for Shia Muslims because of the grave of Zeinab, the granddaughter of the Prophet Muhammad.

SAYYEDA ZEINAB BOMB 11-06-16

Footage from State TV:

Raw images of the attacks:


Who Demolished Ammunition Depot Near Damascus?

Regime ammunition warehouses have been demolished by an explosion near the besieged town of Moadamiya, southwest of Damascus.

One report said the leading rebel faction Jaish al-Islam carried out the attack. However, the group has denied issuing a statement.

Other claims point to a dissident Alawite movement which also said it killed Alaa Makhlouf, a confidant of President Assad’s wife Asma, earlier this month.

MOADAMIYA AMMO DEPOT


Journalist Abdulkader Shot in Turkey; ISIS Suspected

Journalist Ahmad Abdulkader has been shot and wounded in Sanliurfa in southeast Turkey in another suspected attack by the Islamic State.

Abdulkader was attacked by two gunmen on a motorbike who fired three shots. He has been hospitalized in stable condition.

The Islamic State’s news agency Amaq said ISIS fighters were responsible.

Addulkader’s brother Ibrahim was murdered last year in one of a series of ISIS attacks on journalists.

Ahmad Adulkader ran the website and radio station Eye on Homeland.

ABDULKADER


Reports: US Airstrikes Kill 20+ Civilians Near ISIS-Held Manbij in Aleppo Province

US airstrikes, supporting a Kurdish-led offensive against the Islamic State, reportedly killed more than 20 civilians on Saturday.

The Local Coordination Committees said the bombs hit Ojiknah outside the ISIS-held city of Manbij in Aleppo Province. An activist claimed 15 children are among the dead.

Two weeks ago the Syrian Democratic Forces, led by the Kurdish militia YPG, launched an offensive to reclaim Manbij, about 100 km (62 miles) northeast of Aleppo city and 30 km (19 miles) west of the Euphrates River. The SDF have surrounded three sides of the city and have fire control over the remaining route, the Aleppo-to-Manbij road.


Afghan Militia Exchanged for Regime Prisoners

Opposition media reports that four Afghan militiamen, captured last year in Daraa Province in southern Syria, have been exchanged for five detainees held by the regime, including four women.

Thousands of Afghan men have been recruited by Iran to fight in Syria’s conflict.


Video: Russia-Regime Continue Bombing of Infrastructure in Aleppo Province

Russia and Syrian warplanes continue their bombing of infrastructure in Aleppo Province, this time near Kafr Naha on the Aleppo-Idlib highway, southwest of Aleppo city (see map):

The Local Coordination Committees documented the deaths of 55 people in Aleppo Province on Saturday.

An image of night-time blazes from Russian incendiary bombing, which has escalated in the last two weeks:

RUSSIA INCENDIARY BOMBING 06-16