Monday, November 4, 2013

Suicide bombing kills at least 6 in Syrian town

Suicide bombing in Syrian town kills at least 6 people

A suicide bomber blew up a truck laden with explosives in the town of Sabtiyeh in east of Homs province Monday, killing at least 6 and injuring 37 people, a Syrian official from Homs said.

The official also said that there is no information yet about the identity of the suicide bomber, but he confirmed that there were children among the dead as the blast happened near a school compound.

The official refrained from revealing his identity because he was not authorized to give information on the bombing to journalists.

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said that the death toll could rise because some of the wounded were in critical condition.

In another incident, a mortar round hit an area close to the ancient Damascus citadel, said the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights.

"A mortar landed near the Damascus citadel wounded several people, while another fell near the Dweila district (in the southeast), setting fire to a textile plant."

"The news of the blast was confirmed by state news agency SANA, who blamed terrorists for a shell that caused a textile factory to burn down completely," AFP reported.

The news agency often refers to those opposing President Bashar al-Assad as terrorists.

Syrian state TV reported that opposition fighters have escalated mortar attacks on Damascus as witnessed Sunday as several mortar shells fell over a number of areas in the Syrian capital, damaging many buildings and wounding at least 10 people.

It is worth mentioning that the Chinese embassy, the Iraqi consulate and the Russian embassy in Damascus, were hit by mortar shells last month.

In the northern city of Aleppo, two people were killed in a fresh mortar attack at the Sa'ad Allah al-Jabiri Square in the heart of the city, according to SANA.

Meanwhile, SANA news agency, said that regime forces are planning to begin a large-scale military offensive in the al-Qalamoun region — a region of strategic importance for the defense of Damascus — to recapture the areas of southern Damascus that have long been held by rebel groups in the now over two-and-a-half year old conflict.

Syrian newspapers are expecting the military campaign against the armed opposition in al-Qalamoun region to begin as soon as possible, before the Geneva II conference which is scheduled to be held in Nov. 23.

Last month, al-Watan Saudi daily reported that Lebanon's Hezbollah group was mobilizing up to 15,000 fighters to aid Syrian regime forces in their attempt to dislodge rebel forces in al-Qalamoun region.

The army has been keeping these suburbs under siege for nearly a year and according to activists, food and basic supplies are so scarce that many children are suffering from malnutrition, according to AFP.

The Observatory added that fighting between regime forces supported by Iran-backed Lebanese Shiite group, Hezbolla, was also taking place in Sbeineh in the south of Damascus and in the Al Hajar Al Aswad neighbourhood, while "regime forces bombarded parts of the town.”

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