DAMASCUS, Syria -- Two massive
explosions rocked the heart of the Syrian capital on Wednesday, striking
near the army and air force command headquarters and sending huge
columns of thick black smoke over Damascus.
The
bombings were the latest to hit the city as the uprising against
President Bashar Assad's regime intensifies, highlighting the
increasingly deep reach of the rebels determined to topple him.Syria's
state-run news agency SANA said a fire broke out in the area after the
twin blasts, which struck just before 7 a.m. near the landmark Omayyad
square.
The explosions shattered the windows
of nearby buildings, including the entire facade of the Dama Rose hotel
which overlooks the area, and were heard several miles away.
Information
Minister Omran Zoubi said the blasts were caused by two "large, highly
explosive" improvised devices, one of which may have been placed "on the
inner side of the fence" around the grounds of the army command
building.
He said the damage inflicted was
material and there were no casualties."I can confirm that all our
comrades in the military command and defense ministry are fine," he told
Syrian TV, which is located near the site of the explosion, in a
telephone call."Everything is normal," he said.
"There
was a terrorist act, perhaps near a significant location, yes, this is
true, but they failed as usual to achieve their goals."Black smoke rose
high into the air and ambulances were rushed to the site as police
sealed off the area to traffic and journalists.
Witnesses said the explosions were followed by heavy gunfire,
suggesting security forces clashed with gunmen in the high security
area.
Syria's unrest began in March 2011 when
protests calling for political change met a violent government
crackdown. Many in the opposition have since taken up arms as the
conflict morphed into a civil war that activists say has killed nearly
30,000 people.
Over the past few months, the
rebels have increasingly targeted security sites and symbols of regime
power in a bid to turn the tide in the fighting.
On
July 18, rebels penetrated the heart of Syria's power elite, detonating
a bomb inside a high-level crisis meeting in Damascus that killed three
top regime officials, including Assad's brother-in-law and the defense
minister. Other large blasts have targeted the headquarters of security
agencies in the capital, killing scores of people this year.
And
on Tuesday, several bombs went off inside a Damascus school that
activists said was being used by regime forces as a security
headquarters.
Several people were
wounded.Syria's conflict was the focus of attention as world leaders
gathered at the U.N. General Assembly's annual meeting in New York this
week.U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon demanded international action to
stop the war in Syria, telling a somber gathering of world leaders
Tuesday that the 18-month conflict had become "a regional calamity with
global ramifications.
"Ban, declaring that the
situation in Syria is getting worse every day, called the conflict a
serious and growing threat to international peace and security that
requires attention from the deeply divided U.N. Security Council.That
appears highly unlikely, however, at least in the near future.
Russia
and China have vetoed three Western-backed resolutions aimed at
pressuring Assad to end the violence and enter negotiations on a
political transition, leaving the U.N.'s most powerful body paralyzed in
what some diplomats say is the worst crisis since the U.S.-Soviet
standoff during the Cold War.In sharp contrast to the U.N. chief,
President Obama pledged U.S. support for Syrians trying to oust Assad
â?? "a dictator who massacres his own people."
Associated Press