An image grab taken from Syrian state TV on December 23 shows Syrians carrying away a dead body at the site of a blast in Damascus. AFP
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SYRIA'S Muslim Brotherhood has claimed responsibility for suicide bombings in Damascus that killed 44 people, saying they were the first step in liberating the capital and that more attacks were to come.
The claim on Saturday contradicted assertions by the regime of President Bashar al-Assad that the blasts, which also wounded 166 people, were the work of al-Qa'ida and of the opposition Syrian National Council that the regime carried them out.
''One of our victorious Sunni brigades was able to target the state security building in Kfar Suseh in the heart of the ... capital Damascus in a successful operation carried out by four of our kamikazes drawn from the best of our glorious men, leaving many dead and wounded from the ranks of the Assad gangs,'' it said on its official website.
''We as defenders of the Syrian people and the sanctity of this nation send a message to Assad's gangs: This is the beginning of the liberation of Damascus and the tip of the iceberg,'' the statement added.
''Hence we warn our fellow citizens and advise them not to approach government centres or security branches ... because our martyrdom brigades are in a state of maximum readiness to carry out quality operations in Aleppo, Damascus, and the blessed land of Syria in the next 10 days.''
The statement was signed by the ''Muslim Brotherhood's media committee inside Syria''.
The bombings, the first against the powerful security services in central Damascus since an uprising against Assad began in March, came a day after the arrival of an advance group of Arab League monitors who are to oversee a deal to end the bloodshed.
After the attacks, Deputy Foreign Minister Faisal Meqdad said ''this is the gift we get from the terrorists and al-Qa'ida, but we are going to do all we can to facilitate the Arab League mission''.
The delegates were to hold talks with Foreign Minister Walid Muallem on Saturday.
Muallem has said he expects the observers to vindicate his government's contention that the unrest is the work of ''armed terrorists'', not overwhelmingly peaceful protesters as maintained by the West and human rights watchdogs. Read the rest on: Herald
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