Drone attack kills at least 80 at a packed Syria military graduation ceremony
- Civilians, including six children, and military personnel were among those killed in attack by drones laden with explosives
- Meanwhile, a US jet shot down what officials claimed was a Turkish drone after it came too close to US troops in Syria
Syria’s military blamed “terrorist organisations” for a drone attack on a military graduation ceremony in the city Homs that killed at least 80 people and wounded 240.
There was no immediate claim of responsibility for Thursday’s strike, which was one of the deadliest recent attacks on an army that has been fighting a civil war for more than a decade.
The attack killed civilians, including six children, as well as military personnel, and there were concerns the death toll could rise as many of the wounded were in serious condition, Health Minister Hassan al-Ghabash said.
Syria’s military said in an earlier statement that drones laden with explosives targeted the ceremony packed with young officers and their families as it was wrapping up.
Without naming any particular group, the military accused insurgents “backed by known international forces” of the attack and said “it will respond with full force and decisiveness to these terrorist organisations, wherever they exist”.
