Published: 21 October, 2012, 12:35
Edited: 22 October, 2012, 08:00
Edited: 22 October, 2012, 08:00
TRENDS:
Syria unrest
Syria unrest
A wreckage of a burnt car following a bomb explosion outside a police station in a Christian quarter of Damascus' Old City on October 21, 2012. (AFP Photo / SANA)
(6.0Mb)embed videoAt least 13 people have been killed and 29 injured as a powerful blast hit outside a police station in Bab Touma neighborhood in the old part of Damascus, reports the state news agency. It comes as Lakhdar Brahimi visits the Syrian capital for talks.
Smoke rose above what were believed to be twin car bomb explosions in front of a police station, witnesses said. Other reports suggest it was a taxi rigged with explosives.
Ambulances were seen rushing to the scene as police shut access to the area, Twitter user NMSyria says.
At least 13 people were killed by the blast, SANA reported citing sources in the Interior Ministry. But given that the area is usually crowded, there are fears the death toll could be much higher. It is also unclear whether any police staff are among those dead or injured.
Dozens of cars were burnt and many houses sustained extensive damage.
The area was busy at the time of the explosion, with people returning from Sunday prayers. Bab Touma is a predominantly Christian neighborhood. It is also a popular shopping place in Damascus.
Two more bombings were reported to have occurred in Syria on Sunday. An explosive device, planted “by terrorists”, detonated on a road in the capital’s neighborhood, injuring several passers-by. A suicide bomber blew up his car outside a Syrian-French Hospital in the besieged city of Aleppo. The latter instance resulted in material damage only, SANA said.
Syrians dousing a car following a bomb explosion outside a police station in a Christian quarter of Damascus' Old City on October 21, 2012. (AFP Photo / SANA)
Meanwhile, the UN-Arab League peace envoy Lakhdar Brahimi arrived in Damascus on Sunday for talks. The envoy met with President Bashar al-Assad in a bid to implement a ceasefire by next week, when the Muslim festival of Eid al-Adha begins.
“I appeal to everyone to take a unilateral decision to cease hostilities on the occasion of Eid al-Adha and that this truce be respected from today or tomorrow,” Brahimi told reporters in Damascus after meeting with Assad on Sunday.
Brahimi had previously met with Syrian opposition groups inside and outside the country. He said that while he "found an overwhelming response" from Assad's opponents to his cease-fire plan, he only received "promises" without "commitment".
The peace envoy did not reveal Assad's response to his plan. But SANA news agency says Assad assured Brahimi that he supported his mission: "The president said he is open to any sincere effort to find a political solution to the crisis on the basis of respecting the Syrian sovereignty and rejecting foreign interference."
Assad also stressed that a political solution must be "based on the principle of halting terrorism, a commitment from the countries involved in supporting, arming and harboring terrorists in Syria to stop doing such acts," the state news agency reported.
Whether Assad has in fact committed to the peace plan remains unclear, however.
Officials in Damascus blame the popular uprising that began in March of last year on a foreign conspiracy. They say the revolt against the government is an insurgency headed by "terrorists" who infiltrated the country from across the border.
The end of fighting in Syria all depends on the will of the countries that are backing the rebels and giving them arms, money and means of communication, believes Dr Ali Mohamad, the editor-in-chief of the Syria Tribune media channel, as “the rebel groups are all controlled from the outside”.
“These countries can make the rebels cease fire in 48 hours or even less – if they have the will to cease fire,”Mohamad insists.
The UN estimates the conflict in Syria has left over 20,000 people dead, while various opposition groups claim the death toll now stands at 33,000. Over 340,000 refugees have fled the country.
A Christian quarter of Damascus' Old City on October 21, 2012. (AFP Photo / SANA)
A Christian quarter of Damascus' Old City on October 21, 2012. (AFP Photo / SANA)
A wreckage of a burnt car following a bomb explosion outside a police station in a Christian quarter of Damascus' Old City on October 21, 2012. (AFP Photo / SANA)
The neighborhood of Bab Tuma where the explosion took place.(Image from twitter user @NMSyria)
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...but your recount of the civil war is false. The lebanese have been bombing the hell out of EACH OTHER since the 70's. Each side wanting 100% annihilation of the other side. That's why it was called a civil war. And to blame syria for that is proposterous. If you want someone to blame, blame those who carved out the map of the middle east, the occupation entities well before syria's involvement. Oh wait... its easier to blame Syria as the mother of all evil rather than the west.
The unrest in Syria is definately being caused by the Americans. There are two scenarios that could be at play here, 1) The Americans want to install a puppet/traitor in government, get rid of the Russian military base and sell US made weapons with 'kill switches' to the Syrians so that the Israelis can walk in and take Syria's land some time in the future, or 2) The Americans weaken Syria so that Assad is thrown out of office and then Syria has a constant civil war until the country is totally destroyed, then the Israelis can walk in and take over. Israel's end game is to steal Syria's land for themselves but they cannot do this with a Russian military base there.
The commanders of the insurgents in the flashpoint city of Aleppo distributed the first salaries of the armed groups, saying the money is coming from some foreign states, including US, UK, France, Israel, Saudi Arabia Qatar and Turkey. They are promised good bonus from Rockefellar and Rothschild Bankers too.
A recent New York Times report suggested that Saudi Arabia and Qatar have been funneling money and arms to Syrian insurgents for months.