QAMISHLI, Syria — A car bomb detonated near a church in the Kurdish-majority city of Qamishli in northeast Syria on Thursday wounding several people, an AFP journalist and state media say.

The metal gate of the church was slightly dented by the blast, but the building otherwise emerged intact, the correspondent says.

There is no immediate claim for the attack, which Syrian state television says wounded 11 people and damaged nearby cars.

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a Britain-based monitor, says only seven people were wounded, and that three among them were in critical condition.

Last month, a car bombing near Kurdish security offices in the same city wounded seven civilians, including a child, the Observatory said.

Syria’s Kurds have led the US-backed fight in the war-torn country against the Islamic State jihadist group, which continues to claim attacks despite its territorial defeat earlier this year. </s> At least 12 civilians were wounded Thursday in a car bomb explosion that occurred near a church in Qamishli in northeast Syria. The Islamic State terror group claimed responsibility for the attack. VOA's Zana Omar was at the scene. </s> A car bomb detonated near a church in the Kurdish-majority city of Qamishli in northeast Syria on Thursday wounding almost a dozen people, an AFP journalist and state media said.

There was no immediate claim for the attack, which Syrian state television said wounded 11 people and damaged several cars.

Syria's Kurds have led the U.S.-backed fight in the war-torn country against the Islamic State group, which continues to claim deadly attacks despite its territorial defeat in March. </s> As many as 11 people were wounded on Thursday in a car bomb blast that occurred in the northeastern Syrian city of Qamishli, Syrian state television reported on Thursday

MOSCOW (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 11th July, 2019) As many as 11 people were wounded on Thursday in a car bomb blast that occurred in the northeastern Syrian city of Qamishli, Syrian state television reported on Thursday.

The car bomb exploded near a Christian church in the city's central district of al-Wasta.

Several cars were damaged by the explosion.

Earlier in the day, media reported that a car bomb blast took place in the northwestern Syrian city of Afrin. Some media outlets claimed that there were two explosions one in Afrin and the other one in the nearby village of Turanda. A source told Sputnik that 11 people were killed and at least 38 were injured in the incident. </s> At least 11 people were injured in a car bombing outside a Syriac Christian church in a Kurdish-majority city in northeast Syria on Thursday while at least 13 others were killed in another car bombing in Afrin.

AFP reports that IS (also known as ISIS, ISIL or Daesh) has claimed responsibility for Thursday’s car bombing outside of the Virgin Mary Syriac Orthodox Church in Qamishli, a city located along Syria’s northeastern border with Turkey.

According to Syrian state media, 11 people were wounded in the bombing and cars were damaged.

Communications intercepted by the SITE Intelligence Group showed that jihadis were targeting a gathering of “belligerent Christians.”

According to AFP, the front gate of the church was dented but the church building itself did not sustain structural damage.

“A car bomb detonated at the Virgin Mary Syriac Orthodox church in my city Qamishli, in Syria today wounding almost a dozen people including an 8 year old,” one Assyrian Syriac Orthodox Christian wrote on Twitter. “I hope for a day where I never hear of news like this again. Pray for my people please.”

AFP posted a video of the aftermath of the bombing that shows dozens of people standing around while smoke billows out of the destroyed vehicle out front of the church’s entrance.

While Syria has been torn by civil conflict since 2011 and has dealt with the presence of religious extremism, millions of Syrians have fled the nation as refugees in search of better lives elsewhere.

But according to International Christian Concern, Christians in Qamishli have maintained a stronger presence in the city than in most other locations throughout Syria.

“Our prayers are with the victims and families of those affected by the car bombing in Qamishli. This kind of attack serves as a reminder for all Syrian Christians on just how much work needs to be done to protect their lives and their rights,” said ICC Regional Manager Claire Evans.

“The Syrian conflict is constantly evolving, and Christians are always left in the crosshairs of opposing factions. We must work to ensure that any solution to the conflict preserves a place for Christians in society.”

Qamishli was not the only Syrian town victimized by a bombing on Thursday. Reports indicate that as many as 13 were killed and 30 others injured by a car bombing that took place in the northwestern city of Afrin, a town that was seized by Turkey-backed rebels last year and now administered by Turkish forces and allied Syrian rebels.

The bombing took place at a checkpoint manned by the Turkey-backed rebels. Among those killed were eight civilians, two of whom were children, and four were militants, according to the British-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights.

There was no immediate claim of responsibility for the Afrin car bombing.

Afrin was victimized by a bombing last December that took the lives of nine people and another in January that took the lives of three.

In March, it was reported that five children were killed while playing near a monastery in the northwest Syrian Christian town of al-Suqaylabiyah.

Over 100 have been killed in recent days as fighting between regime forces and rebel groups sparked up last Wednesday in northwest Syria. According to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, 57 of the killed have been Assad regime forces while 44 were rebels or jihadis.

“The fighting is ongoing as regime planes and artillery pound the area,” Observatory head Rami Abdel Rahman said, according to the Kurdish news outlet Rudaw.

Since the beginning of the Syrian civil war eight years ago, more than 370,000 people have been killed.

Last year, President Donald Trump vowed to withdraw all U.S. ground troops from Syria.

That was a decision that was unpopular among some within his conservative evangelical base who feel that a “full” and “rapid” withdrawal of U.S. troops could put Christian communities in Northern Syria in “mortal danger.”

Additionally, there was some speculation that the decision to withdraw troops from Syria is what led former Defense Secretary James Mattis’ decision to retire. </s> People gather at the site of a car bomb blast in front of a church in Qamishli, Syria July 11, 2019. REUTERS/Rodi Said

BEIRUT (Reuters) - A car bomb killed 11 people and wounded many others on Thursday in the Syrian city of Afrin, which Turkey-backed rebels captured from Kurdish fighters last year, medical sources and a monitor said.

The blast struck an entrance to the city, killing civilians including children, the UK-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights war monitoring group said.

The Observatory and the medical sources said many other people had been injured in the explosion, some very badly.

Afrin lies north of Aleppo near the border with Turkey. It was held by the Kurdish YPG militia until last year when rebels seized it and the countryside around it in a Turkey-backed offensive.

Later in the afternoon, a car bomb exploded in front of a church in the northeast city of Qamishli, which the YPG controls, injuring 8 people, local security forces said.

Islamic State claimed responsibility for the Qamishli blast.

While major fighting has died down for now, there is still much insecurity in many parts of Syria, with bombings and other attacks targeting civilians in areas controlled by all sides in the conflict.

In June, a car bomb in Azaz, a town near Afrin also controlled by Turkey-backed rebels, killed at least 10 people when it struck in a busy marketplace on a Ramadan night. </s> A car bomb detonated near a church in the Kurdish-majority city of Qamishli in northeast Syria on Thursday wounding several people, an AFP journalist and state media said.

The metal gate of the church was slightly dented by the blast, but the building otherwise emerged intact, the correspondent said.

There was no immediate claim for the attack, which Syrian state television said wounded 11 people and damaged nearby cars.

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a Britain-based monitor, said only seven people were wounded, and that three among them were in critical condition.

Last month, a car bombing near Kurdish security offices in the same city wounded seven civilians, including a child, the Observatory said.

Syria's Kurds have led the US-backed fight in the war-torn country against the Islamic State group, which continues to claim attacks despite its territorial defeat earlier this year.

These have included arson attacks on wheat fields and deadly car bombs.

The jihadist group still maintains a presence in the country's vast Badia desert, as well as in areas controlled by the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces in the country's northeast and east.

The SDF, backed by the war planes of a US-led coalition, announced the end of the group's self-proclaimed "caliphate" in March in Syria's far eastern village of Baghouz.

Syria's war has killed a total of more than 370,000 people and displaced millions since it started in 2011 with the repression of anti-government protests. </s> BEIRUT, July 11 (Reuters) - A car bomb killed 11 people and wounded many others on Thursday in the Syrian city of Afrin, which Turkey-backed rebels captured from Kurdish fighters last year, medical sources and a monitor said.

The blast struck an entrance to the city, killing civilians including children, the UK-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights war monitoring group said.

The Observatory and the medical sources said many other people had been injured in the explosion, some very badly.

Later in the afternoon, a car bomb exploded in front of a church in the northeast city of Qamishli, which the YPG controls, injuring 8 people,local security forces said.

While major fighting has died down for now, there is still much insecurity in many parts of Syria, with bombings and other attacks targeting civilians in areas controlled by all sides in the conflict.

In June, a car bomb in Azaz, a town near Afrin also controlled by Turkey-backed rebels, killed at least 10 people when it struck in a busy marketplace on a Ramadan night. </s> (Hatha al-Youm | Iraq News )- A car bomb exploded near Azra church in the Christian-majority neighborhood of Wasta in Qamishlo, Syrian Kurdistan (Rojava), July 11, 2019. Photo: ANHAQAMISHLO, Syrian Kurdistan,— Twelve people were injured on Thursday when a car bomb exploded near a church in a Christian-majority neighborhood of Qamishlo in Syrian Kurdistan (Rojava), northern Syria, ANHA news agency reported.The bomb was caused by a booby-trapped vehicle in the neighborhood of Wasta in Qamishlo near Azra church, according to media outlets in Rojava.The metal gate of the church was slightly dented by the blast, but the building otherwise emerged intact, AFP reported.There was no immediate claim for the attack, which Syrian state television said wounded 11 people and damaged nearby cars.The blast caused significant material damage, but no fatalities were reported.The security forces were deployed to the venue and ambulances evacuated the wounded to the hospital for treatment.The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a Britain-based monitor, said only seven people were wounded, and that three among them were in critical condition.In June, a car bombing near Kurdish security offices in Qamishlo city wounded seven civilians, including a child, the Observatory said.A car bomb killed 11 people and wounded many others on Thursday in the Syrian Kurdish city of Afrin which Turkish forces and Ankara-backed Syrian mercenary fighters captured from Kurdish fighters in 2018, medical sources and a war monitor said.Syria’s Kurds have led the US-backed fight in the war-torn country against the Islamic State group, which continues to claim attacks despite its territorial defeat earlier this year.These have included arson attacks on wheat fields and deadly car bombs.The jihadist group still maintains a presence in the country’s vast Badia desert, as well as in areas controlled by the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces in the country’s northeast and east.The Kurdish PYD and its powerful military wing YPG/YPJ considered the most effective fighting force against IS. The YPG, which make up the backbone of the SDF forces, has seized swathes of Syria from Islamic State.The Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces expelled the extremist group from its last patch of territory in the eastern Syrian village of Baghouz in March 2019.In 2013, the Syrian Kurdish Democratic Union Party PYD — the political branch of the Kurdish People’s Protection Units (YPG) — has established three autonomous Cantons of Jazeera, Kobani and Afrin and a Kurdish government across Syrian Kurdistan in 2013. On March 17, 2016, Kurdish and Arab authorities announced the creation of a “federal region” made up of those semi-autonomous regions in Syrian Kurdistan.U.S. has for years supported the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) in the fight against the Islamic State group in Syria, as part of an international anti-jihadist coalition dominated by the Kurdish People’s Protection Units (YPG). But in December 2018 U.S. President Donald Trump abruptly announced the pullout from Syria.Copyright © 2019, respective author or news agency, Ekurd.net | AFP | nrttv.com | hawarnews.comComments Comments
Another car bomb detonates in the city of Qamishli near a church, injuring 11. The Islamic State claimed responsibility.