This image grab from a UGC video taken on July 16, 2024 shows shows the scene of a shooting at the Imam Ali Mosque in the Al-Wadi Al-Kabir area in the east of Oman’s capital Muscat. Four people were killed and multiple others wounded in the incident, police said on July 16.
| Photo Credit: AFP

An Indian national was among six people killed in a rare shooting attack by Islamic State militant group near a Shia Muslim mosque in Oman’s capital.

The shooting on July 15 night near the Imam Ali Mosque also claimed the lives of one policeman and four Pakistan nationals, while injuring 28 others.

“Following the shooting incident reported in Muscat city on July 15, Foreign Ministry of Sultanate of Oman has informed that one Indian national has lost his life & another is injured,” Embassy of India in Muscat posted on X July 16.

“Embassy offers its sincere condolences & stands ready to offer all assistance to the families,” it said.

The three attackers were also killed by security forces during the incident in the al-Wadi al-Kabir area on July 15 night, according to a statement.

Pakistan said four Pakistanis were among those killed in a “terrorist attack” on the Imam Ali Mosque. India also said one of its citizens was killed.

The Islamic State (ISIS) militant group claimed responsibility for the attack.

The ISIS has repeatedly targeted Shia ceremonies, processions and worshippers in countries like Iraq, Afghanistan and Pakistan. But it has never before claimed an attack in Oman, where the Shia are a minority.

Police in Oman said on July 16 a shooting in a mosque has killed four people and wounded others.

The Royal Oman Police said in a statement online the shooting happened in the Wadi Kabir neighborhood of Muscat, the Omani capital.

Police gave no motive nor said who was suspected of carrying out the attack.

Oman is on the eastern edge of the Arabian Peninsula. Such violence is rare in the sultanate.

The U.S. Embassy in Oman issued a warning for Americans to “stay away from the area.”