• Explosion at Imam Ali ibn Abi Talib Mosque in Homs during Friday prayers.
• At least eight fatalities and 18 injuries reported.
• Suspected attack by ultra-conservative group Saraya Ansar al-Sunnah.
• Authorities impose security cordon and investigate the incident.
• Regional condemnation of the attack from neighboring countries.

In a tragic incident, an explosion targeted the Imam Ali ibn Abi Talib Mosque in Homs, Syria, killing at least eight people and injuring 18 others during Friday prayers, according to Syrian state media SANA. The attack, which occurred in a predominantly Alawite area known as the Wadi al-Dhahab neighborhood, led local officials to initiate a security cordon and investigation around the mosque site, as images showed blood on carpets and substantial damage to the structure, including shattered windows and fire damage, according to South China Morning Post, India Times, Anadolu Agency, and Reuters.

The Syrian Health Ministry official Najib al-Naasan emphasized that the casualty numbers could rise as investigations unfolded. The ultra-conservative group Saraya Ansar al-Sunnah has claimed responsibility for the bombing, marking another act of violence following a similar attack during a church service in Damascus earlier this year which claimed 25 lives, according to Al Jazeera and BBC.

The Supreme Alawite Islamic Council condemned the attack, labeling it as part of a systematic campaign against the Alawite community, while Syria's Foreign Ministry characterized the explosion as a "terrorist crime". The recent ongoing violence underscores the fragile security situation in the country, particularly following the fall of long-time president Bashar al-Assad last year, who belonged to the same minority, according to Los Angeles Times, Channel News Asia, and CBS News.

As reports of sectarian violence continue to surface throughout Syria, local officials have expressed that such attacks are part of "repeated desperate attempts to undermine security and stability" in the region, which remains steeped in complex ethnic and political tensions, emphasizing the need for effective security responses from the new Syrian administration led by President Ahmad al-Sharaa, according to South China Morning Post, Anadolu Agency, and Reuters.