DARAA, Syria, March 23 (UPI) -- The official Syrian news agency SANA said "armed gangs" staged an early morning attack on a Daraa Mosque that other reports said left six people dead.
As anti-government protests continue to challenge President Bashar Assad's rule, media reports said at least six people were killed in the early morning attack. Daraa has been the site of violent protests in recent days.
Among those killed was Ali Ghassab al-Mahmid, a doctor from a prominent family in Daraa, who went to the mosque to treat the casualties, residents told al-Arabiya.
They told the network prior to the attack shortly after midnight, electricity and telephone service were cut off.
"An armed gang early Wednesday attacked a medical team in an ambulance while passing near al-Omari mosque in Daraa," SANA said. The agency said four people were killed, a doctor, paramedic, an ambulance driver and a member of the security forces.
Quoting "official sources," the agency said, "The armed gangs in Daraa have stored weapons and ammunition inside al-Omari mosque and used children whom they kidnapped from their families as human shields."
Irish radio RTE said Wednesday's attack brought to 10 the number of civilians killed in anti-government demonstrations in recent days. Daraa, some 60 miles south of Damascus, has been the focus of anti-government demonstrations.
