At least 16 killed in northeast Syria bombings
YPG leader Redur Xelil says that the attack was likely carried out by the IS group
File photo shows Kurdish fighters in Hasakah province in northeastern Syria
Published date: 31 December 2015 01:26 GMT
|
Last update: 8 years 10 months ago
At least 16 people were killed and more than 25 injured when explosions struck three restaurants in the northeastern Syrian city of Qamishli on Wednesday, a monitoring group said.
At least one of the blasts was caused by a suicide bomber, the Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights told AFP.
An AFP correspondent in the city said the suicide attack took place in a restaurant in a Christian neighbourhood.
"Three explosions, one by a suicide bomber inside a restaurant, hit ... Qamishli city in Hasakah province," the Observatory's director Rami Abdel Rahman told AFP.
Reuters reported that two of the bombs hit restaurants.
Kurdish People's Protection Units (YPG) leader Redur Xelil told Reuters that the attack was likely carried out by the Islamic State (IS) group.
In October, the YPG became part of the Democratic Forces of Syria, a US-backed alliance to fight IS.
Qamishli, near the border with Turkey and close to Iraq, is under the shared control of the Syrian government and Kurdish authorities, who have declared zones of "autonomous administration" across parts of north and northeast Syria.
Syrian troops and seasoned Kurdish fighters have coordinated on security in Hasakeh province where IS group fighters have tried to advance.
According to the Observatory, all three of the explosions happened in a zone controlled by Syrian government forces.
New MEE newsletter: Jerusalem Dispatch
Sign up to get the latest insights and analysis on Israel-Palestine, alongside Turkey Unpacked and other MEE newsletters
Middle East Eye delivers independent and unrivalled coverage and analysis of the Middle East, North Africa and beyond. To learn more about republishing this content and the associated fees, please fill out this form. More about MEE can be found here.
