Oman mosque shooting: Attackers were all Omani citizens, say police

Perpetrators in the shooting that targeted a mosque in Oman's Wadi Al Kabir area near the capital Muscat were all Omani citizens, police said on Thursday.

The attack left at least nine people dead including three attackers, four Pakistanis, an Indian, and a police officer, authorities said. Twenty-eight people of various nationalities were also wounded.

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The assault began on Monday evening at the Ali bin Abi Talib mosque in the Wadi al-Kabir neighbourhood of Oman's capital Muscat.

The Royal Oman Police said the three gunmen were brothers and "were killed due to their insistence on resisting security personnel". It said that police investigations had indicated the three gunmen were "influenced by misguided ideas".

Daesh on Tuesday claimed responsibility for the attack, saying that three of its "suicide attackers" fired on worshippers at the mosque on Monday evening and exchanged gunfire with Omani security forces until morning.

Gulf Arab states have condemned a deadly shooting — an unprecedented attack for the normally stable sultanate that has sparked concern among its neighbours. It was the first known operation claimed by Daesh in the sultanate.

The UAE expressed its "strong condemnation of these criminal acts and its permanent rejection of all forms of violence".

A foreign ministry statement said the attack "undermines security and stability, and endangers" the lives of Omanis.

Bahrain's foreign ministry called the shooting a "heinous attack that goes against all religious and moral values and aims to destabilise the security and stability of Oman".

• Gulf states condemn rare Oman attack claimed by Daesh