QAMISHLI, Syria (North Press) \u2013 ISIS on Thursday claimed responsibility for the assassination of Sheikh Farhan al-Mansour, a member of the Shiite Scholars Board in Syria, who was targeted last week in the Sayyida Zainab area in the Damascus countryside.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
In its weekly al-Naba newspaper, the group said the attack was carried out using an explosive device planted inside al-Mansour\u2019s vehicle after he left the Sayyida Zainab area, which is known for heavy security presence.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The explosion reportedly caused critical injuries to al-Mansour, who later died in hospital.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The cleric was targeted on Friday near Safir al-Zahraa Hotel and the Fatimiyah area while leaving the Sayyida Zainab shrine after leading Friday prayers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Local sources said the blast left al-Mansour seriously wounded before he was transferred to hospital, where he later succumbed to his injuries.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Sheikh Farhan al-Mansour was among the prominent preachers at the Sayyida Zainab shrine and served on the Shiite Scholars Board in Syria. He was known for advocating civil peace and rejecting sectarian division.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The Syrian Ministry of Endowments condemned the attack, saying it targeted the security and stability of society and posed a direct threat to civil peace and national unity.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
In a statement, the ministry voiced support for Internal Security Forces efforts to pursue those involved and reveal the circumstances surrounding the attack.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The Syrian Interior Ministry meanwhile said investigations are ongoing to identify those responsible for the bombing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
QAMISHLI, Syria (North Press) \u2013 ISIS on Thursday claimed responsibility for the assassination of Sheikh Farhan al-Mansour, a member of the Shiite Scholars Board in Syria, who was targeted last week in the Sayyida Zainab area in the Damascus countryside. In its weekly al-Naba newspaper, the group said the attack was carried out using an […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":8,"featured_media":137531,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"pgc_sgb_lightbox_settings":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[3,2],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-137530","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-politics","category-syria"],"yoast_head":"\n