Isis claims rare mass shooting of Shia Muslims in Oman

Extremist group claims three of its fighters stormed a Shia mosque in Muscat

The Isis militant group has claimed responsibility for the killing of at least nine people in a rare attack on a Shia mosque in the wealthy Gulf state of Oman.

About 28 others also sustained injuries late on Monday when several gunmen stormed into the Ali bin Abi Talib mosque in the Wadi al-Kabir neighbourhood of the capital Muscat, located around 500 metres from an international school.

Four Pakistanis, an Indian national and a police officer were among those killed in the gun attack, the authorities said.

The Sunni extremist group claimed responsibility on Tuesday through an affiliated news agency, without providing evidence. It represents the first time Isis has purported to be behind an attack in Oman, where only 5 per cent of Muslims are believed to belong to the Shia sect.

A video showed a crowd running for cover inside the mosque as gunmen opened fire on believers gathered on the eve of Ashura — an annual period of mourning, where Shia Muslims commemorate the martyrdom of the Prophet Muhammad’s grandson, Imam Hussein, and his 72 companions in the battle of Karbala in the seventh century in present-day Iraq.

Believers could be heard crying "Oh god" and "Oh Hussein" as gunshots rang out in the background.

People fleeing 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 (UGC/AFP via Getty Images)

“There were nearly 500-600 people in the courtyard when we first heard sounds that resembled fireworks,” an unnamed Pakistani expatriate told Times of Oman.

The firing continued for more than an hour and a half as everyone tried to rush inside the mosque, the eyewitness recalled.

“We were instructed to stay silent in the hall. In that moment of despair, I messaged my friend, thinking I might not live to see the dawn. Death seemed imminent.

“We felt like hostages for nearly two-three hours before ROP (Royal Oman Police) officers finally made their way into the building,” he added.

The extremist group said three of its "suicide attackers" fired on visitors to the mosque on Monday evening and exchanged gunfire with Omani security forces until morning. It said the gunmen attacked a gathering of Shia Muslims who were "practising their annual rituals".

Police in Oman have not said whether they have identified a motive for the attack or made any arrests.

Pakistan identified four of the dead as its citizens. "This is a very unprecedented event ... the likes of it we have not seen in Oman's history," Pakistan's ambassador to Muscat, Imran Ali, said after visiting some victims in hospital.

Pakistan's prime minister Shehbaz Sharif offered condolences and "instructed the Pakistan embassy in Muscat to extend all possible assistance to the injured". "Pakistan stands in solidarity with the Sultanate of Oman and offers full assistance in the investigation," he added.

Nearly two million migrants, mostly from South Asia, help power Oman's economy by filling low-skilled jobs in construction and other fields.

The US embassy in Muscat issued a security alert following the shooting and asked its citizens to remain vigilant and monitor local news.

Analysts described the rare shooting as the latest example of Isis returning to carrying out random international attacks after losing its fief in Iraq and Syria.

"It makes them more resilient in some ways," Aaron Y Zelin, a senior fellow at the Washington Institute for Near East Policy, told the Associated Press. "It's part of their reorganisation from being a group with most of its actions in Iraq and Syria to using their resources in a global network."

Isis have long targeted Shia Muslims in their violent attacks and propaganda, describing them as heretics. The group claimed responsibility for an attack in Shia-majority Iran that killed 84 people in January.

In March, the group said it was behind an attack that killed more than 140 people at a concert hall near Moscow.