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Death toll to rise from Damascus bombings
June 12, 2016, 9:13 am

This is the fourth time the district hosting the shrine has been attacked. It comes as Syrian forces make advances against ISIL elsewhere in the country [Xinhua]

This is the fourth time the district hosting the shrine has been attacked. It comes as Syrian forces make advances against ISIL elsewhere in the country [Xinhua]


The Syrian government warned on Sunday that the death toll from three suicide bombings which tore through the capital Damascus a day earlier would likely rise.

So far, medical officials say that at least 20 people have been killed in the attacks which targeted a recruitment area near the popular historic district of Sayeda Zeinab. Many women and children were among the dead, they said.

The Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) claimed responsibility for the attack and said it was carried out by two men wearing suicide vests in addition to an explosives-laden vehicle.

At least 60 have been wounded, some with life-threatening injuries, while emergency crews work to rescue any that may be trapped under the rubble.

UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon condemned the attack and called it appalling.

The district hosts a shrine, which is believed to hold the burial chamber of Sayed Zeinab, granddaughter of the Prophet Mohammed.

Every year, tens of thousands of Shia Muslims from around the world undertake a pilgrimage to the shrine.

The shrine is also frequented by Hezbollah fighters and other Shia volunteers fighting alongside the Syrian army against Islamist groups.

The BRICS Post with inputs from Agencies