Car Bomb Kills 31 in Syrian Capital

A handout picture released by the official Syrian Arab News Agency (SANA) shows Syrians carrying an injured man after a powerful car bomb exploded near the headquarters of Syria's ruling Ba'ath party in the center of Damascus, February 21, 2013.

Syrian activists say at least 31 people have been killed in a car bombing near the headquarters of the country's ruling Ba'ath Party in central Damascus.
The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said Thursday most of the dead were civilians.

Syrian state media called the blast a "terrorist bombing" that struck a densely populated area near the al-Mazraa neighborhood.

Russian news agencies also said the bombing blew out windows at the Russian embassy.

Meanwhile, the Syrian opposition is holding a meeting Thursday in Cairo to discuss an initiative to hold peace talks with President Bashar al-Assad's government.

On Wednesday, Syrian activists said rebels shot down a warplane outside Damascus, shortly after an airstrike killed at least 20 people in the same area.

Amateur video circulated by the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights showed a warplane firing rockets and then plummeting to the ground in Hamouriya after apparently being hit by rebel machine gun fire.  The shoot-down could not be independently verified.

from VOA News
February 21, 2013

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Posted in: Ba'ath Party, Bashar al-Assad, Cairo, Car bomb, Damascus, Syria