Ramit Mehrotra, Pune
At least six people died as a motorcycle planted with explosives detonated near a Syaida Zeinab Shrine in a Damascus suburb, on Thursday.
State media reported preliminary details along with photos of a charred vehicle with people surrounding it and men in military outfits. The casualty count so far is six, with several people wounded. Approximately 26 people are wounded and are being transported to several hospitals in Damascus, according to Syrian Regime Health Minister Hassan al Ghabash.
Sources said that the bomb was seen being transported in a cab, which was later told to have been planted on a bike.
Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a UK-based information organization aimed at documenting the human rights crisis in the civil war that has struck Syria since 2011, reported that a woman was among the dead, and her 2 children were injured.
There was no immediate response to the attack near the Sayyaid Zeinab bombing on Thursday. The neighborhood is named after the Granddaughter of Prophet Muhammad, Sayyaid Zeinab. This is the 2nd attack this week at the shrine. Previously, two men were wounded on Tuesday, when a motorcycle laced with bombs exploded. The explosions come ahead of the annual commemoration of Ashura, where Shia Muslims observe the death of Imam Hussian, the grandson of Prophet Muhammad. Ashura is the 10th day of the Islamic Month of Muharram.