Syria: Blast hits state TV building in Damascus

The blast shattered several offices and wounding at least three employees, Syrian TV said.The explosion was the latest in the Syrian capital, which has seen a string of suicide attacks and other bombings in the past few months as the countrys civil war has escalated and the rebels grow bolder in their tactics. The TV building, which also houses state-run radio, is located at the Umawiyyeen roundabout in central Damascus.After Mondays blast, the TV remained on air despite what was another severe breach of a state institution and a heavily guarded area in the Syrian capital. A bomb that exploded in the state security headquarters in Damascus on July 18 killed four of Syrias top security leaders.A pro-government private Syrian TV station, Al-Ikhbariya, broadcast images of the damage at the state TV building.The footage showed destroyed walls, overturned desks, blown-out cabinet doors, broken glass and dangling electricity cables. A few TV workers were shown tending to a wounded colleague.Information Minister Omran al-Zoubi said the bomb blast caused heavy material damage and light injuries among the employees.He blamed Qatar, Saudi Arabia and Israel for the attack. Syrian authorities accuse the Gulf countries and Israel of supporting the rebels fighting against President Bashar Assads troops and fueling the insurgency in Syria.Syrias rebels have grown increasingly confident in recent months. In July, the rebels and Syrian regime forces fought intense battles for a week in Damascus in what was the opposition fighters biggest challenge so far in the capital.