In a devastating incident on Thursday, a military academy in Syria witnessed one of the deadliest attacks in its history, resulting in the loss of at least 100 lives. War monitors and officials reported that weaponized drones targeted the site shortly after Syria’s defense minister concluded a graduation ceremony, marking an unprecedented and grim turn in the war-torn nation’s 12-year-long civil conflict.
The attack, executed with precision on the military academy located in Homs, a central province, claimed the lives of both civilians and military personnel, as confirmed by Syria’s defense ministry. The ministry attributed the assault to “terrorist” groups utilizing drones. Notably, the statement did not explicitly name any organization, and no group immediately claimed responsibility for the devastating strike.
Expressing their commitment to retaliation “with full force,” Syria’s defense and foreign ministries vowed a robust response to the tragic incident. Throughout the day, Syrian government forces launched intensive bombing attacks on the opposition-held zone of Idlib in response to the military academy assault.
Remarkably, the defense minister had been present at the graduation ceremony but left mere minutes before the drone attack unfolded. According to sources within Syria’s security apparatus and a regional alliance supporting the Damascus government against opposition forces, the timing was crucial, ensuring the defense minister’s safety.
Describing the aftermath, a witness who had assisted in decorating the academy for the occasion recounted, “After the ceremony, people went down to the courtyard and the explosives hit. We don’t know where it came from, and corpses littered the ground.”
As the Syrian nation grapples with the aftermath of this heinous act, the search for accountability intensifies, raising concerns about the evolving tactics and severity of attacks in a region already plagued by prolonged conflict.
