DAMASCUS, SYRIA – On certain occasions terrorists find a veritable treasure trove of targets, making it hard to determine just who they are trying to kill.
Some crimes are obvious insofar as we have a clear perpetrator, a clear target and a clear motive. Take assassinations, for instance. The target is without doubt a head of state or similarly important personage, the assailant is usually caught right away (unless s/he dies in the act) and the reasons for the attack are plain.
Some crimes are less easily analysable. This could be because the bad guy dies with no transparent motive left behind or the attack occurs in a venue where the case could be made for several possible targets.
Take today’s featured attack.
On this day in 2008
A car bomb on the outskirts of Syria’s capital Damascus killed at least 17 people. The blast happened near buildings used by security forces at an intersection leading to an important Shia shrine.
We felt a very strong explosion. We walked outside… the whole building collapsed. Five members of my family were wounded and are in hospital.
Eyewitness
Over a month later Fatah al Islam, an Al Qaeda (AQ)-linked group claimed the attack. But was it aimed at Syrian security forces or Shia Muslims? As Syria is run by an odd Shia sect and Islamist jihadis hate all Shia does it really matter?
Read More Today in Terrorism
May 31, 1906: Spanish anarchist bombs royal wedding
On May 31, 1906 a Spanish anarchist threw a bomb hoping to hit King Alfonso XIII, killing 24 and wounding more than 100.
May 30, 2009: Anti-government group bombs TV station in Ecuador
On May 30, 2009 two pamphlet-bombs exploded outside an Ecuadorian TV station and ministry: no victims or significant damage ensued.
May 29, 2016: ISIS uses chlorine gas in terrorist attack
On May 29, 2016 35 civilians were wounded in an ISIS attack using rockets containing chlorine gas in Iraq’s Nineveh Province.
