Islamist militant group claims responsibility for Aleppo bombingsOctober 4, 2012 - 10:27 AMT PanARMENIAN.Net - An Islamist militant group has claimed responsibility for coordinated suicide bombings in the northern Syrian city of Aleppo that killed 48 people, the SITE monitoring group which tracks Jihadist websites said on Thursday, Oct 4, according to Reuters. At least two car bombs exploded on Wednesday in the main Saadallah al-Jabiri Square and another bomb exploded a few hundred meters away, state media said. SITE said Al Nusra Front claimed responsibility for "blowing up dens" in a communiqué posted on Islamist forums on Wednesday and provided details of its operation, pictures of the targeted buildings after the attacks, and the bombers. The group said it targeted the Officers' Club in Saadallah al-Jabiri Square, municipal offices, the Amir Hotel, and the Touristic Hotel, identifying each as being either command centers or barracks for security forces and "shabbiha," pro-government militias. The authenticity of the information could not be verified. Rebels fighting to overthrow President Bashar al-Assad announced last week a new offensive in Aleppo, Syria's largest city and commercial hub of 2.5 million people, but neither side has appeared to make significant gains so far. The explosions also came a week after rebels bombed military command buildings in the heart of Damascus and clashed with security forces for several hours. That was the biggest attack in the capital since July 18 when a bomb killed several senior security officials including Assad's brother-in-law, the defense minister and a general. Top stories Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev arrived in Moscow on April 22 to hold talks with Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin. Authorities said a total of 192 Azerbaijani troops were killed and 511 were wounded during Azerbaijan’s offensive. In 2023, the Azerbaijani government will increase the country’s defense budget by more than 1.1 billion manats ($650 million). The bill, published on Monday, is designed to "eliminate the shortcomings of an unreasonably broad interpretation of the key concept of "compatriot". Partner news | Putin congratulates Pashinyan’s birthday Russian President Vladimir Putin congratulated Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan on his birthday on June 1. Opposition motorcade en route to Gyumri for large rally A motorcade of protesters headed by Archbishop Bagrat Galstanyan is heading to the city of Gyumri. Ruling MPs, Foreign Minister talk Armenia-Azerbaijan processes MOs from the ruling Civil Contract party met with the Foreign Minister Ararat Mirzoyan in the Armenian parliament. Russia: Armenia’s frozen membership weakens CSTO position in Caucasus A Russian envoy said any step that could alienate the CSTO member states from each other is “deeply wrong”. |