Amsterdam’s Vondel Church, near one of the city’s most popular parks, was largely destroyed in a fire just as New Year celebrations were in full swing, local media reported on Thursday.

The former Catholic Church’s roughly 50-metre-high (164-feet) tower and the roof collapsed in the blaze, which an emergency services spokesperson said had made the 154-year-old structure “no longer salvageable.”

“It is a very intense and terrible fire in this monumental church,” lamented Amsterdam Mayor Femke Halsema.

Fire broke out minutes after fireworks

The blaze was first reported shortly after midnight and was quickly escalated to a major incident, with firefighters calling in assistance from other regions of the Netherlands.

The Dutch navy deployed its 60-meter-high aerial work platform to help tackle the blaze, officials said.

Local media described how strong winds fanned the flames before the fire was brought under control on Thursday morning.

A large number of nearby flats were evacuated as a precaution.

No injuries were reported and investigators say they don’t know what caused the fire.

However, speculation is rising that the city’s New Year’s Eve fireworks may have played a part, as the blaze started so close to midnight, after the pyrotechnics had been set off.

Amsterdam banned the sale of fireworks to the public in 2020, but many illegal ones were still set off across the city by residents.

Former church turned into concert hall

Vondel Church was a neo-Gothic building, designed by renowned architect Pierre Cuypers, who was also responsible for the Rijksmuseum and Amsterdam Central Station.

The building had not been used as a place of worship since 1977 and had been repurposed as an event venue.

The church fire was one of several incidents that marred New Year’s celebrations in the Netherlands. (DW)

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At least 22 people have been killed and 63 injured in a suicide bombing at a church in Syria’s capital of Damascus, according to state media.

Worshippers had gathered for a packed Sunday service at the Mar Elias Church in the Dweila neighbourhood when the attack took place.

The suicide bomber entered and opened fire, before detonating his explosive vest, Syria’s interior ministry said in a statement.

It said the suicide bomber was a member of Islamic State (IS).

A security source told Reuters two men were involved in the attack, including the man who blew himself up.

It is the first suicide bombing in Damascus since Bashar al-Assad was toppled by an Islamist-led rebel insurgency in December.

People tried to stop suicide bomber

The blast sparked panic and fear in the church, which had been full of worshippers, including children and the elderly, eyewitnesses said.

The building was strewn with wood from fittings and pews after the attack, with fallen icons and pools of blood on the floor.

Families are still searching for missing loved ones, with some local media reporting children were among the dead.

Lawrence Maamari was inside the church when the attack happened.

He told AFP a man had entered and begun shooting, with people trying “to stop him before he blew himself up”.

Ziad Helou, who was at a shop nearby, said he heard gunfire then an explosion, and saw glass flying.

“We saw fire in the church and the remains of wooden benches thrown all the way to the entrance,” he said.

‘Ensure the protection of all citizens’

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said it was the first suicide attack inside a church in Syria since war erupted in 2011.

IS has been behind several attempted attacks on churches in Syria since Mr Assad’s fall.

But a security source told Reuters this was the first to succeed.

The Orthodox patriarchate in Damascus urged authorities to “bear full responsibility for what … is happening concerning the violation of the sanctity of churches, and to ensure the protection of all citizens”.

The United Nations special envoy for Syria, Geir Pedersen, expressed “outrage at this heinous crime”, calling for a full investigation.

Syria’s foreign ministry described the attack as “a desperate attempt to undermine national coexistence and to destabilise the country”.

Interior minister says investigations underway

Since the new authorities took power, the international community has urged the government to protect minorities and ensure their participation in Syria’s transition, particularly after sectarian violence in recent months.

Syria’s interior minister, Anas Khattab, said specialised teams had begun investigating.

“These terrorist acts will not stop the efforts of the Syrian state in achieving civil peace,” he said in a statement.

Earlier this month, Mr Khattab said IS had attempted attacks against Christian and Shiite communities that authorities had thwarted.

Syria’s Christian community has shrunk from about 1 million before the war to under 300,000 due to displacement and emigration. (ABC)

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A prominent bishop in Sydney, Australia has been rushed to hospital after being stabbed multiple times during a service.

Video, posted on social media, shows Bishop Mar Mari Emmanuel allegedly being attacked at Wakeley’s Christ The Good Shepherd Church while delivering his sermon on Monday night.

The confronting footage shows the Bishop speaking when a younger man dressed in black calmly walks up to him.

The Bishop looks at the man, who then makes a stabbing motion to the face and neck area.

The Bishop then falls to the ground and his condition is not known.

Screams are heard from the crowd, as several people rush forward to try to help.

The camera then pans away.

The footage was taken from a livestream from the church’s YouTube page.

NSW Ambulance told NCA NewsWire paramedics were called to the scene about 7.15pm on Monday.

A spokesman said a man aged in his 50s was taken to Liverpool Hospital with multiple stab wounds.

Three other people were also injured and are still being treated at the scene.

A man aged in his 30s suffered multiple lacerations, a man in his 20s recieved a cut to his hand, and a man in his 60s was wounded to his arm.

Dozens of police raced to the scene where it is understood an angry crowd has gathered.

In a statement, NSW Police said an operation was underway in Wakeley, following reports of a stabbing.

“Officers attached to Fairfield City Police Area Command attended a location on Welcome St, Wakeley following reports a number of people were stabbed,” police said.

“Officers arrested a male and he is assisting police with inquiries.

“The injured people suffered non-life threatening injuries and are being treated by NSW Ambulance paramedics.

“The community is urged to avoid the area.

“More information will be provided once it becomes available.”

The attack comes just three days after six people were killed during a stabbing massacre at Sydney’s Bondi Westfield Shopping Centre.

There is nothing to suggest the two events are linked.

The Bishop gained prominence during the Covid-19 pandemic after describing Sydney’s lockdown as “mass slavery”.

He also claimed vaccines were futile because living “normally” would boost immunity.

“Are we humans? Because we are being treated like animals,” Bishop Emmanuel said in a sermon in 2021.

“They are encouraging people to go and take a vaccine and stay at home. They have had enough.”

He has a large following on social media, including TikTok and Facebook. (news.com.au)

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