Islamic State claims Syria suicide attack that kills 44
DAMASCUS, Syria — A suicide bomber riding an empty livestock truck laden with explosives blew himself up Wednesday in a crowded district in the predominantly Kurdish town of Qamishli in northern Syria, causing massive destruction and killing 44 people in a new attack claimed by Islamic State.
Residents and activists described a huge explosion in the western district of the town Kurds call the capital of their self-declared autonomous enclave in northern Syria.
Hours after the earlymorning explosion, rescue workers continued to search for survivors under the rubble of buildings, some of them totally leveled by the powerful blast. Most of the victims were civilians, who were lingering in the district that also houses a station for the Kurdish security forces. It was not immediately clear if any Kurdish fighters were among those killed.
“Terror is all I saw among the residents when I first arrived. I was shocked at the extent of destruction in the homes and shops,” said Decile Husen, a 23-year old media activist who works with the Kurdish ANHA Hawar news agency.
Qamishli, near the Turkish border, is mainly controlled by Kurds, but Syrian government forces are present and control the town’s airport.
The Kurds, Syria’s largest ethnic minority, have carved out a semi-autonomous enclave in Syria’s north since the start of the civil war in 2011, where they run their own affairs.
Separately, Syria’s state news agency SANA reported a blackout in nearby Aleppo province, blaming rebel groups for hitting the main power station in the provincial and deeply divided capital. Government forces and allied troops have tightened the noose on the main rebel enclave in the city of Aleppo, urging fighters there to surrender. Humanitarian groups have warned of a catastrophe if the siege on the rebel-held parts of Aleppo continued.
Kurdish officials said Islamic State militants targeted Qamishli in retaliation for the ongoing offensive they led against Manbij, an Islamic State stronghold east of Qamishli.
The predominantly Kurdish Syria Democratic Forces, backed by airstrikes and training from the U.S.led coalition, have been the main force fighting Islamic State on the ground in northern Syria. Kurdish forces have also been the most successful ground force in terms of reclaiming territory and towns from Islamic State over the past two years.
In recent weeks, Islamic State has come under increasing pressure, losing Fallujah in Iraq and Palmyra in Syria. Its fighters are being besieged in Manbij. In retaliation, the militant group has claimed a series of attacks it said were against members of the international coalition that have been fighting against it.
The commander of the Kurdish security forces, Joan Ibrahim, vowed to avenge the “dirty” attack.