Mosque bombing in Yemen capital kills at least 25: Medics
SANAA - Agence France-Presse
People walk past a headgear lying on the ground at the al-Balili mosque after two bombings at the mosque in Yemen's capital Sanaa September 24, 2015. Reuters Photo
A bomb attack targeting Shiite worshippers at a mosque in Yemen's capital on Sept.24 killed at least 25 people and wounded dozens more during prayers for the Muslim holiday of Eid al-Adha, medics said.The blast happened in the Balili mosque where Huthi Shiite rebels who control Sanaa go to pray, according to witnesses.
Witnesses reported that after a first blast inside the mosque, a suicide bomber detonated an explosives belt at the entrance as worshippers rushed outside.
There was no immediate claim of responsibility but Sanaa has been shaken by a string of bombings by the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) jihadist group in recent months targeting Shiites.
The radical Sunni Muslim group considers Shiites to be heretics and has also claimed bombings of mosques in Kuwait and Saudi Arabia.
The Iran-backed Huthi rebels have seized several regions of Yemen including Sanaa which they overran a year ago.
Pro-government forces backed by Saudi-led air strikes have recently managed to wrest back some southern provinces, including Yemen's second city of Aden.
ISIL and the Yemen-based branch of its jihadist rival Al-Qaeda have exploited the turmoil to boost their activities in the impoverished country.