Syrian group claims responsibility for bus bombing near Damascus

DAMASCUS, Syria — A group calling itself Ansar Minber al-Rasul claimed responsibility for a bomb attack on a passenger minibus in Jarmana, a town in the countryside outside the Syrian capital, according to Arabic media reports. The Syrian Health Ministry said two people were killed and 13 others wounded when a bomb placed inside the minibus detonated. The group appeared to emerge about three weeks before the attack, making its first public statement on July 13 with a religious proclamation directed at Christian and Druze communities in Jarmana. Several subsequent statements targeted the town and Syria's Druze population. In its post-attack statement, the group said it had carried out one of the operations it had previously announced. Syrian authorities said the device was placed inside the passenger minibus and detonated as it traveled. The Health Ministry confirmed the casualty figures and said medical teams transferred the wounded to nearby hospitals. An investigation into the incident is underway. No further details about suspects or the motive behind the bombing were immediately available.