As the dust settles over IS attack that left 250 dead, some begin to wonder why the Damascus government allowed the disaster to happen
GAZIANTEP, Turkey- It was 6 am, and like any other day Asma al-Aswad was buying groceries for her family of five in the Syrian city of Sweida.
Walking down the road where she would typically buy groceries, a man parked his car and began selling fruit and vegetables.
Enticing people with his low prices, dozens began to approach the car. Aswad was one of those people, but, as she approached, the vehicle exploded.
"The man blew himself up and turned everyone who was near him into small fragments," 28-year-old Aswad recalled.
"I fell to the ground. The floor was full of dust and blood. Whoever did this wanted to kill as many people as possible. Most people would do their shopping at this time."
Assaults with guns and explosives followed the suicide bombing in the city of Sweida, on villages to its north and east. Government forces also killed two would-be suicide bombers, according to pro-Syrian government outlets.
A fourth blast hit the provincial capital later in the day. The Islamic State group (IS) claimed the assault hours later.
Aswad survived the IS attack on Wednesday. However, about 250 people were killed in the attacks that day, which marked the worst bloodshed to hit Sweida province since the civil war began in 2011.
According to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights activist group, at least 45 IS militants died while carrying out the attacks.
But as Syrians inside Sweida come to terms with what took place, their anger is shifting towards Syria's government, which some believe turned a blind eye, letting the massacre take place.
Sweida, a province in southern Syria, is predominantly Druze. Since the outbreak of the civil war, the majority of the city has been under government control and seen relatively little fighting.