Amid an atmosphere of great sadness and grief, dozens of families of the victims of the attack carried out by drones on the Military College in the city of Homs gathered early on Friday morning. The attack that targeted an officers' graduation ceremony on Thursday resulted in the death and injury of dozens, including women and children.

On Friday morning, Syria carried out the funeral of the first batch of victims of the attack carried out by drones on the Military College in the city of Homs immediately after the end of the officers’ graduation ceremony on Thursday, which caused dozens of casualties, including soldiers and members of their families.

Amid an atmosphere of great sadness and grief, in front of the military hospital in Homs, dozens of victims’ families gathered since the early morning. Funeral ceremonies were held in groups for approximately 30 dead soldiers and civilians, in the presence of Defense Minister Ali Mahmoud.

A woman who wore a black dress dotted with white flowers and covered her head with a white scarf was unable to control herself, and seemed to be delirious with intense grief over the killing of her son.

She said while one of the officers was calling on the families to escort the bodies of their children into the ambulances, "My son, do not get in the car. Do not go, my love. Stay near me. This sleep is not worthy of you."

It is noteworthy that drones targeted the courtyard of the Military College in Homs during the graduation ceremony of officers and the presence of a large number of their families. Video clips circulated on social media showed a state of panic and chaos during the targeting, with victims falling to the ground and wounded people crying out for help.

According to Syrian official media, on Friday morning, at least 89 people were killed, including 31 women and five children, in addition to 277 others being injured.

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, for its part, reported a new toll higher on Friday, documenting the killing of 123 people, including 54 civilians, including 39 children and a woman related to officers. It was also estimated that 150 others were injured.

So far, no party has claimed responsibility for the attack, while the Syrian army on Thursday accused "armed terrorist organizations supported by known international parties" of being behind the targeting "via drones carrying explosive ammunition." He stressed that he "will respond with full force and firmness to these terrorist organizations wherever they are found."

Jihadist factions controlling part of Syrian territory sometimes use drones to target military sites.

In response to the attack, since Thursday, government forces began bombing areas under the control of Hay'at Tahrir al-Sham and other factions allied with it in Idlib Governorate (northwest) and the neighboring western Aleppo countryside, according to what the Syrian Observatory reported, resulting in the killing of 15 civilians, a new toll.

Spokesman for the Secretary-General of the United Nations, Stephane Dujarric, said in a press briefing on Thursday that António Guterres is "deeply concerned" about the attack on the military college, expressing at the same time his concern "about the retaliatory bombing by pro-government forces on several sites in northwestern Syria."

In a rare step since the outbreak of the conflict in 2011, the government announced official mourning and lowering flags for three days, starting Friday, to mourn the souls of the victims. The Ministry of Endowments called on all mosques in the country to hold absentee prayers for the souls of the victims.