Car bomb shakes centre of Damascus
A car bomb has shaken central Damascus, exploding near the headquarters of the ruling Baath party and the Russian Embassy, eyewitnesses and opposition activists said.
Opposition activists said at least 31 people were killed in the bombing.
Syrian state television reported the blast in the central Mazraa
neighborhood, calling it a "terrorist" attack on a heavily populated area. It
did not say what caused the explosion but reported that there were casualties
and that the wounded included four children.
The pro-regime station Al-Ikhbariya showed images of what appeared to be at
least four dead bodies on the ground and cars on fire. The footage shows
firefighters trying to douse cars on fire and lifeless bodies lying on the grass
of a public garden.
Eyewitnesses at the scene said a car had exploded at a security checkpoint
between the Russian Embassy and the central headquarters of the ruling Baath
party of President Bashar Assad.
The aftermath of the car bomb that
exploded near the headquarters of Syria's ruling Baath party in the centre of
Damascus (AFP/Getty Images)
Ambulances rushed to the scene of the blast, which also shattered windows and
sent up a huge cloud of smoke visible throughout much of the city, eyewitnesses
said.
"It was huge, everything in the shop turned upside down," one local resident said, speaking on condition of anonymity for fear of retribution for speaking with foreign media.
Damascus has so far mostly avoided the large-scale violence that has destroyed other Syrian cities, though deadly car bombings have targeted government buildings in the capital.
The blast followed two mortar attacks in as many days on the capital. On Wednesday, two mortar shells exploded near a soccer stadium in Damascus, killing one player. The day before, two mortar shells went off near one of Assad's three palaces in the city, causing only material damage.
Not long after the first blast Thursday, a security official reported a second blast in the capital's northeastern Barzeh neighborhood. He had no other information and spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to brief the media.
The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said two car bombs had exploded near security centers in Barzeh. It gave no further details.
Syria's conflict began in March 2011 with political protests against the government and has since evolved into a civil war between Assad's regime and hundreds of rebel groups seeking to topple it. The U.N. says some 70,000 people have been killed in the conflict so far.
Source: Associated Press
"It was huge, everything in the shop turned upside down," one local resident said, speaking on condition of anonymity for fear of retribution for speaking with foreign media.
Damascus has so far mostly avoided the large-scale violence that has destroyed other Syrian cities, though deadly car bombings have targeted government buildings in the capital.
The blast followed two mortar attacks in as many days on the capital. On Wednesday, two mortar shells exploded near a soccer stadium in Damascus, killing one player. The day before, two mortar shells went off near one of Assad's three palaces in the city, causing only material damage.
Not long after the first blast Thursday, a security official reported a second blast in the capital's northeastern Barzeh neighborhood. He had no other information and spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to brief the media.
The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said two car bombs had exploded near security centers in Barzeh. It gave no further details.
Syria's conflict began in March 2011 with political protests against the government and has since evolved into a civil war between Assad's regime and hundreds of rebel groups seeking to topple it. The U.N. says some 70,000 people have been killed in the conflict so far.
Source: Associated Press
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