Emergency services and officers work at the scene of a suicide bombing at Mar Elias Church on the outskirts of Damascus, Syria, on 22 June 2025. [Mohammed al-Rifai/EPA]
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan condemned the terrorist attack against a Greek Orthodox Church during service in Damascus on Sunday, saying his country will not allow Syria to be “dragged into a new climate of instability.”
“I strongly condemn the heinous terrorist attack carried out against the Mar Elias Church in the Syrian capital, Damascus. I offer my condolences to the families and loved ones of those who lost their lives, as well as to the government and people of Syria, and I wish a swift recovery to the injured,” he said in a post on his official account on X on Monday.
“We stand in solidarity with the Syrian people and government in the face of this vile act of terror, which targeted Syria’s peace, security, internal stability, and its culture of coexistence, along with the stability of our region. After years of oppression and conflict, our neighbour, brotherly Syria, has only recently begun to look to the future with hope. We will never allow Syria to be dragged into a new climate of instability at the hands of proxy terrorist organisations. We will continue to support the Syrian government in its fight against terrorism.”
The attack Sunday on the Mar Elias Greek Orthodox church during a Divine Liturgy in Dweil’a near Damascus was the first of its kind in Syria in years, and comes as Damascus under its de facto Islamist rule is trying to win the support of minorities.
As President Ahmad al-Sharaa struggles to exert authority across the country, there have been concerns about the presence of sleeper cells of extremist groups in the war-torn country.
The ministry and most witnesses said a gunman entered the church, and started firing at the people there before detonating his explosive vest.
SANA, citing the Health Ministry, said 63 other people were wounded in the attack. Father Fadi Ghattas told The Associated Press after the attack that some 350 people were praying at the church.
The United States, the European Union and governments across the Middle East condemned the attack, decrying it as a terrorist attack.
No group immediately claimed responsibility, but the Syrian Interior Minister has blamed the extremist Islamic State group.
[Kathimerini, AP]