Explosion Live Blog

3 weeks 4 days ago - Syria

A group calling itself al-Nusra Front has claimed responsibility online for a deadly suicide bombing in Damascus this week, the SITE Monitoring Service said on Sunday.

Al-Nusra Front named the bomber as Abu Omar al-Shami, and said he detonated his payload when members of the Syrian security forces who had assembled for Friday prayers in the al-Midan neighbourhood had peaked to 150.

The US-based SITE, which tracks jihadi websites, said the group posted its claim on the Shumukh al-Islam site which is generally used by al-Qaeda for posting its statements.

The Front said the attack was carried out at a place where Syrian security members had gathered to pray, and not next to the Zein al-Abidin mosque as reported by official media.

Syrian state television reported that 11 people were killed and 28 wounded in the attack, and broadcast footage of the scene filled with smoke and people shouting as they ran.

Al-Nusra Front had previously claimed the February 12 twin bombings in Aleppo and the January 6 bombing in Damascus, SITE said. [AFP]

Tags al Midan, Al Nusra Front, explosion
3 weeks 6 days ago - Syria

A blast has rocked the Syrian capital's central district of al-Midan, causing casualties, Syrian state media reported.

"The explosion took place in the al-Midan neighbourhood, near the Zein al-Abidin mosque," the state television reported.

Syria's pro-government Addounia television said that five people were killed and 20 wounded in what they described as an "apparent suicide bombing".

Opposition activists said the explosion occurred as worshippers were coming out of a mosque.

Earlier on Friday, a separate explosion was reported in an industrial zone of Damascus but it was unclear if there were any casualties.

Friday has typically been a day of anti-government protests since an uprising against President Bashar al-Assad began 13 months ago.

For more on recent developments, read our news story: Syria 'in contravention' of peace plan

[The handout image below, released by the Syrian opposition's Shaam News Network, purports to show the car bomb which exploded in the al-Sinaa neighbourhood of Damascus earlier today - Photo: AFP]

Tags al Midan, blast, car bomb, damascus, explosion
3 weeks 6 days ago - Damascus

A loud explosion was heard in the Syrian capital Damascus on Friday, residents said, although it was not clear what had caused the blast.

The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said the blast went off in an industrial zone of the capital, near a state-owned transport company, and that it was unclear whether there were any victims.

Anti-government activists said in messages posted on Facebook that a white Mercedes vehicle had exploded in the industrial zone and that there were casualties.

They said ambulances rushed to the site which was cordoned off by security.

The blast took place amid a tenuous UN-backed ceasefire that went into effect on April 12 but has failed to take hold with violence and casualties reported on a daily basis.

For more on Syria, read our news story: Syria 'in contravention' of peace plan

Click here for a summary of recent developments.

Tags anti government activist, explosion, resident witnesses, syria, Syrian capital
4 weeks 1 day ago - Manama

Bahraini authorities say an explosion has wounded four policemen during clashes in one of the anti-government strongholds in the Gulf kingdom.

The Interior Ministry says two of the injured policemen are in critical condition after the blast, which occurred late on Tuesday in the mostly Shia village of Diraz, west of the capital Manama.

Wednesday's statement described it as a "terrorist act" but gave no details about the explosion.

The level of violence has increased in recent weeks in Bahrain, where uprisings began last year.

At least 50 people have been killed in unrest since February 2011.

[Source: AP]

Tags Bahrain, explosion, police wounded
5 weeks 5 days ago - Suez

Dark smoke was rising over the Egyptian city of Suez on Saturday after an explosion at the Nasr Oil Company.

Army personell cordoned off the area and emergency vehicles rushed to the scene.

Fire crews extinguished the blaze after about one hour.

A security source said one worker died and four other were seriously injured in the explosion.


[Source:Reuters]

Tags egypt, explosion
6 weeks 3 days ago - Bahrain

 

Seven Bahraini policemen were wounded, three of them seriously, when a home-made bomb exploded on Monday, an Interior Ministry spokesman said, during a protest near the capital calling for the release of an activist on a two-month hunger strike.

Protesters threw petrol bombs at riot police to lure officers into Ekr, a Shia village outside the capital Manama, before the explosion was set-off, the spokesman said.

On Sunday, Bahrain ruled out extraditing jailed Bahraini political activist Abdulhadi al-Khawaja, also a Danish citizen, despite a request from Denmark to hand him over because his health was worsening after the two-month hunger strike.

Daily protests to demand his freedom have been taking place across the Gulf Arab state. [Reuters]

Tags Abdul Hadi al Khawaja, explosion
6 weeks 3 days ago - Cairo

A senior Egyptian security official says "militants" have blown up a gas pipeline in Egypt's Sinai Peninsula that transports fuel to neighbouring Israel and Jordan.

Northern Sinai security chief Major General Saleh al-Masri says Monday's blast hit a section of the pipeline outside the city of el-Arish.

He says it did not cause major damage or a fire since the gas flow had been cut following a blast on the pipeline last month.

The attack was the 14th on the pipeline since the popular uprising that ousted longtime Egyptian leader Hosni Mubarak last year.

Previous bombings of the pipeline have been blamed on "Islamist militants" who have stepped up activity in the Sinai, taking advantage of a security vacuum caused by a thin police presence in the post-Mubarak era.

[Source: AP]

Al Jazeera's Adam Makary tweeted the incident earlier:

adamakaryAround 5am, 14th explosion since February 2011 at Arish gas terminal supplying natural gas to #Israel and #Jordan. #Egypt #SinaiMon Apr 09 07:03:42 2012
Tags egypt, explosion, pipeline
9 weeks 5 days ago - Syria

 

Twenty-seven people were killed, mostly civilians, and almost 100 wounded in two huge bomb blasts in the Syrian capital on Saturday, the health minister announced on a state television channel.

"Twenty-seven people, mostly civilians, were killed and 97 others wounded in the two explosions," Wael al-Halaqi said on Syria News. [AFP]

Tags damascus, death toll, explosion
9 weeks 5 days ago - Damascus

 

The following video, posted online, show columns of smoke rising after the reported explosion that hit Tahrir Square in Damascus on Saturday.  Syrian state TV reported two explosions in the capital. This footage is reportedly from near the blast that took place between Baghadad street and Al Qassaa neighborhood where the aviation intelligence headquarters is located.

Tags explosion, syria, syria citizen video
9 weeks 5 days ago - Damascus

 

Two explosions shook the Syrian capital Damascus on Saturday, state television reported, and residents said one of the blasts occurred near a security building.

Early indications show that the two explosions are the result of car bombs, state TV said.

The first explosion took place near Customs Department Square in Damascus and the second one took place in the area connecting between Qassaa and Baghdad Street, it reported.

There were no immediate details of casualties from the explosions, which took place two days after the first anniversary of year-long uprising against President Bashar al-Assad.

Tags explosion, syria

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