Syrian intelligence says it thwarted an ISIS attempt to bomb a Shiite shrine ISIS/ISIS News

The shrine of Sayyida Zeinab in Damascus had previously been targeted by ISIS and other armed groups in Syria.

Syrian authorities thwarted an attempt by ISIS fighters to bomb a holy Shiite shrine in a suburb of Damascus, Syrian news agency SANA reported.

“The intelligence and security forces succeeded in thwarting an attempt by ISIS to carry out a bombing inside the city.” Shrine of Sayyida ZeinabA Syrian intelligence source told SANA on Saturday that a number of people had been arrested.

The intelligence official told SANA that the General Intelligence Directorate is harnessing all its capabilities to confront all attempts to target the Syrian people in all their diversity.

The Interior Ministry published photos of four men it said were members of an ISIS cell who were arrested in the countryside outside the capital.

It also published photos of equipment allegedly seized from the suspects, including smartphones, two rifles, three explosive devices and several hand grenades.

The photos showed the identity papers of two Lebanese and a Palestinian refugee residing in Lebanon.

“The shrine they were trying to target is located in the southern suburbs of Damascus,” Al Jazeera’s Hamza Muhammad said in a report from Damascus.

“It is an important religious site for Shiite Muslims. They believe the granddaughter of the Prophet Muhammad is buried (there).”

Muhammad pointed out that this is not the first time this shrine has been targeted.

“In 2008, there was a car bomb explosion… (that killed) 17 people,” he said.

ISIS also previously targeted the Damascus Shrine, the most visited Shiite pilgrimage site in Syria, and claimed responsibility for a double suicide attack in February 2016 near the shrine that killed 134 people.

The group also claimed responsibility for a triple explosion near the Haram several weeks ago that killed at least 70 people.

A bombing in July 2023 killed at least six people near the shrine.

Shiite shrines have been a frequent target of attacks by Sunni groups such as ISIS, whether in Syria or neighboring Iraq.

Iranian-backed guards were posted at the gates of the shrine of Sayyida Zeinab, but they fled last month, shortly before Sunni-led rebels swept into the Syrian capital and ousted President Bashar al-Assad.

Iranian-backed fighters have been Assad’s main backers since the outbreak of war in 2011.