DAMASCUS — At least six people were killed and 21 others wounded in an apparent bombing attack against the Imam Ali bin Abi Talib Mosque in Homs during Friday prayers, according to preliminary reports.

Ambulances transported casualties while security forces sealed off the area.

Social media posts attributed the attack to the extremist Ansar al-Sunna faction, although no official statement confirmed this. The group has previously threatened to target Shiite-majority areas in Homs, Tartus and Latakia.

Local sources told Euronews that security forces cordoned off the site, evacuated victims and launched an investigation, partially closing roads to the explosion location.

Homs experienced widespread tension in late November following the killing of a married couple from a prominent Bedouin tribe that inflamed divisions in Syria's third-largest and most diverse city.

The couple's bodies were discovered at their home in southern Homs. The wife's body showed burn marks, and offensive slogans were found at the scene, according to Syrian news agency SANA.

Authorities responded by deploying security forces, imposing a curfew and issuing statements urging restraint.

A wave of retaliatory attacks followed, prompting authorities to impose a curfew on Sunday night that extended until Monday evening before violence subsided, the agency reported.

The bombing on Friday occurred a day after Syrian forces implemented heightened security measures for Christmas celebrations. — Agencies