MEMRI (JTTM)-
On Sunday, June 22, 2025, a suicide bombing was carried out during Sunday mass at the Mar Elias church in central Damascus’ Al-Duwayle’ah neighborhood, killing 21 and injuring 52 according to a tally provided by the Syrian Civil Defense (White Helmets).
The Syrian Foreign and Interior Ministries condemned the attack as an attempt to destabilize Syria and sabotage coexistence between different faiths. Blaming it on the Islamic State (ISIS) without providing evidence, the government declared it an attack on all Syrians, not just Christians, insisting that “the security of houses of worship is a red line” and vowing to discover the identity of the perpetrator and prosecute anyone trying to harm Syria’s security.
Neither ISIS nor any other group has yet issued a claim of responsibility.
Claim That Attackers Tried To Preach To Locals Months Earlier
Although ISIS has yet to claim the bombing, the organization’s supporters celebrated the attack, some of them working under the assumption that ISIS was responsible.
The pro-ISIS “Eye of Iraq Agency” provided additional details of the incident, reporting that an unknown assailant opened fire at worshippers with a machine gun before detonating a suicide vest. It later claimed that there were two attackers, adding that the victims included Public Security Administration (PSA) operatives. It also noted that the church is in an area that had seen a recent “da’wah [preaching] campaign” by “Syrian youth,” who were subsequently beaten by locals and arrested by security forces.
Notably, the claim that the two assailants had gone around the neighborhood to preach to locals several months earlier was echoed by an unofficial Telegram channel affiliated with the Syrian Popular Resistance-linked “Shield of the Coast Brigade.”
ISIS Supporter Threatens Christians, Justifies Attacks On Them
Celebrating the attack, ISIS supporter Al-Wa’eli threatened Christians and justified attacks targeting them.
He shared a poster depicting an ISIS fighter holding a weapon, with the text: “They will not escape, not even the blind Messiah [i.e. the false messianic figure of the Dajjal].”
Al-Wa’eli wrote: “If you do not rejoice over this action, do not reconsider your faith, because you do not have any.”
Sharing a 2015 photo of a Russian Orthodox priest blessing aircraft on their way to “perpetrate massacres against Syrian Muslims” and declaring the fight against ISIS a “holy battle,” the ISIS supporter justified attacks on Christians, insisting that “we were commanded [by Allah] to kill you.”
He also rejected claims that Syrian Christians are “dhimmis” [non-Muslims guaranteed protection by the Muslim authorities in exchange for paying the jizyah tribute and adhering to certain restrictions], insisting that the conditions under which the 7th-century Caliph ‘Umar bin Al-Khattab granted safety to the Jews and Christians he conquered do not apply to them. To support his argument, the ISIS supporter shared a copy of a 2014 document in which ISIS founder Abu Bakr Al-Baghdadi promised security to the Christians of Raqqa based on the Pact of ‘Umar, banning them from public displays of their religion and obligating them to pay jizyah.
Pro-ISIS Media Group: ISIS Attacks Wherever And Whenever It Wants
In a Telegram post published after the attack, the pro-ISIS Bariqah News Agency wrote defiantly that ISIS strikes “whenever we want, and at any time and place, whenever and however we want,” disregarding the condemnation of its rivals, declaring: “Say whatever you want. We [act based] on clear proof from our Lord, while you waver in your doubts … Your slogans do not frighten us, and your accusations do not distract us. It is for us to act, and for you to scream.”
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