Syrian authorities capture ‘criminals’ linked to brutal church attack that killed dozens: report

Syrian authorities announced arrests have been made in connection to a deadly suicide bombing that claimed the lives of at least 25 people at a Greek Orthodox church on Sunday.

The interior ministry reported the arrest of “a number of criminals involved in the attack,” the Orthodox Times reported. 

According to Interior Minister Anas Khattab, the operation was carried out against “locations linked to cells of the terrorist organization Islamic State,” the outlet reported.

Explosive devices and a booby-trapped motorcycle were also recovered during a security operation near Damascus “against cells affiliated with the Daesh (IS) terrorist group,” according to France24.

The attack “reminds us of the importance of solidarity, and unity of the government and the people in facing all that threatens our nation’s security and stability”, Sharaa said of the church bombing.

The attack comes amid a time of heightened political unrest in the notoriously volatile Middle East – less than 24 hours after the U.S. launched airstrikes on three of Iran’s top nuclear facilities. 

Israel launched a series of similar attacks, including attacks on the Iranian capital, Tehran, in the weeks prior.

Fox News’ Kyle Schmidbauer and The Associated Press contributed to this report. 

Stepheny Price is a writer for Fox News Digital and Fox Business. She covers topics including missing persons, homicides, national crime cases, illegal immigration, and more. Story tips and ideas can be sent to stepheny.price@fox.com