Jacobean Cildania (5321 - 5369)

[Wu Han]

Qart Qildar's largest synagogue rocked by car bombing, at least six fatalities


Rescue workers and firefighters hard at work to clean up after the deadly bombing that killed six people and injured 40 more.

August 30, 5331 | A car bomb placed at the rear offices of Qart Qildar's largest synagogue, the Sacred Follower Erial Synagogue, exploded around noon on August 30 as part of a coordinated suspected anti-Yeudi terrorist attack. A few hours earlier a civilian pickup truck arrived near the offices and parked. A man in traditional Yeudi dress was seen exiting the vehicle, not acknowledging any of the other people around, and leaving the area shortly after. When the bomb went off shortly after noon the explosion rocked the entire capital city of Qart Qildar and claimed at least six lives. A further 40 more people were wounded as part of the office building collapsed. Amongst the casualties is prominent Rabbi Ġakobb Hosegħa, who was pronounced dead shortly after paramedics arrived at the scene. Police have stated at least 12 children were part of the wounded, claiming there was a special children's session at the synagogue that afternoon.

Rabbi Ġakobb Hosegħa openly spoke against Rizzo and claimed he found "OTSB" markings on his synagogue before. Hosegħa said he often received threats but that they did not "bother" him. "Ariel will protect me from harm against any harm" is what he said during a recent televised interview. The Yeudi community has responded in shock to the loss of the prominent Rabbi and the terrorist attack with one eye witness to the bombing declaring that "the time has come to migrate". As of yet there has been no statement on the origin of the bombing by the police nor has Prime Minister Franġisku Namur given his perspective on the situation. The PM's office was unavailable for comment. Some pundits have criticized the PM for his lacklustre attempts to curtail anti-Yeudi violence.

The attack has gone unclaimed so far but many point towards several fringe movements that were active in the past and may still be. The neo-fascist Righteous Men recently had several members arrested after assaulting a Yeudi shop owner in July. The Righteous Men movement was founded by Guzi Crescimanno as a splinter faction from the Order of Saint Sebastian during its pre-politics time. Crescimanno and Order party leader Ilarju Rizzo were once friends but have since fallen out, with Rizzo distancing himself repeatedly from the Righteous Men. Another radical group, the Mark of the Cross, has also recently threatened increased violence against the Yeudi community. In January they claimed the fire at the Qartja Synagogue in Northern Cildania. In recent years there have been increased calls from within both Cildanian politics and the Yeudi community to put in a larger effort to curtail anti-Yeudi violence.

The Ħarald tas-Sur is one of the oldest Cildanian newspapers, which nowadays lays its focus on investigative journalism. It usually remains politically neutral but has a history of writing for the upper middle class.

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Originally posted by Kubrick on 14 Jul 2023.