6 killed in rare Oman attack claimed by ISIL

MUSCAT

Six people including four Pakistanis were killed and nearly 30 wounded in a shooting near a Shiite mosque in the Omani capital Muscat, officials said on July 17, a rare attack in the country that was claimed by the ISIL terror organization.

The mosque attack came as Shiites this week mark Ashura, an annual day of mourning that commemorates the seventh-century death in battle of Imam Hussein, regarded by the branch as the rightful successor to the Prophet Mohammed.

The shooting killed four Pakistanis, an Indian and an Omani police officer, the police said.

It was the first known attack claimed by the ISIL terror group in the sultanate which is among the most stable countries in the Middle East.

In a statement on July 17, the terror group said the attack targeted "Shiites practicing their annual rituals.”

The jihadist group once controlled swathes of Iraq and Syria before it was declared defeated in 2019 following multiple military campaigns.

Despite the loss of its self-declared "caliphate,” the group has continued to mount attacks on civilians and security personnel in both countries.

The three gunmen behind the attack were killed and police officers have "concluded the procedures for dealing with the shooting," a police statement said.

In a written statement, Turkish Foreign Ministry said that Türkiye is “deeply saddened over the attack, conveying its condolences to families of victims and “brotherly people of Oman.”