1981 Azbakiyah bombing
The 1981 Azbakiyah bombing (Arabic: تفجير الأزبكية) was a terrorist car bomb attack that rocked the densely populated al-Azbakiyah neighborhood of central Damascus in Syria on 29 November 1981. The explosion, which took place in front of a school in Baghdad Street, close to a complex of intelligence agencies,[1] destroyed three five-story apartment buildings, and killed 64 civilians and military men.[2] The attack was blamed on the Muslim Brotherhood which was waging an insurrection against the government of Hafez al-Assad at the time.[3]
| 1981 Azbakiyah bombing تفجير الأزبكية | |
|---|---|
| Part of the Islamist uprising in Syria | |
  Bombing location | |
| Location | Damascus, Syria |
| Date | 29 November 1981 |
| Target | Intelligence agencies complex in al-Azbakiyah neighborhood |
Attack type | Car bomb |
| Deaths | 64 Syrian civilians and military men |
| Injured | 135 |
| Perpetrators | Syrian Muslim Brotherhood or the Front for the Liberation of Lebanon from Foreigners |
However, a group calling itself the Organisation for the Liberation of Lebanon from Foreigners claimed responsibility for the bombing. It is believed to be the same group as the Israeli-backed Front for the Liberation of Lebanon from Foreigners, which was responsible for a series of bombings in Lebanon, which killed 146 people.[4]
References
- Seale, Patrick (1990). Asad of Syria: the struggle for the Middle East. University of California Press. p. 331. ISBN 978-0-520-06976-3.
- Crowell-Collier Educational Corporation; Macmillan Educational Corporation (1982). 1983 Year Book. Crowell-Collier Educational Corp. p. 516.
- "Wire Fences Hung in Damascus as Security Measure". Los Angeles Times. December 28, 1981.
- Press, The Associated. "BOMB EXPLOSION IN SYRIA KILLS 64 AND HURTS 135 IN CROWDED AREA". Retrieved 2018-04-13.
