February 22
15:30
2016
The revered Sayyida Zeinab shrine near Damascus has become a symbol of the bloody sectarian fault line in Syria's war, targeted by Sunni jihadists and used as a rallying call by Shiite groups. For years, thousands of Shiite Muslims have visited the sacred site each day, circling the courtyard and chanting religious hymns. A string of devastating bomb attacks near the site on Sunday, claimed by the Islamic State (IS) jihadist group, killed 120 people, including at least 90 civilians, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said.