Blast kills 31 Syrian troops: watchdog
At least 31 troops were killed in a massive bomb attack on an army base near Damascus.
DAMASCUS (AFP) - A rebel bomb attack on an army base near Damascus killed 31 Syrian soldiers Sunday, as loyalist warplanes launched air raids on a town near the border with Lebanon.
The blast came amid a major regime offensive against rebel positions all around the capital and on second city Aleppo in the north.
"Three generals and a brigadier-general were among 31 troops killed in a bomb attack that caused a building in the army transport base in Harasta to collapse," said Syrian Observatory for Human Rights director Rami Abdel Rahman.
"The timing of the attack is significant," coming days after troops loyal to President Bashar al-Assad recaptured several areas that had been under rebel control for a year, he told AFP.
The explosives appeared to have been placed "either inside or beneath the building in a tunnel", Abdel Rahman added, suggesting rebels may have infiltrated the base.
A rebel group, the Direh al-Aasmeh (Shield of Damascus) brigade, claimed responsibility for the attack.
A video distributed by the group, which is part of the Western-backed Free Syrian Army, showed the building collapse completely.
North of the capital, Syria s air force launched air raids on Qara near the border with Lebanon as loyalist forces tried to storm rebel positions in the town, the Observatory said.
"Since the morning, the town of Qara has been hit by air strikes," said the Observatory s Abdel Rahman.
"Warplanes bombarded the town heavily yesterday (Saturday). Regime troops are trying to storm it and to drive the rebels out."
The Britain-based group said opposition fighters in Qara appeared determined to resist despite the onslaught.
Pro-regime newspaper Al-Watan reported that "the army hit the Qalamoun mountains hard, closing in on the terrorists around Qara," using the government s term for rebels.
Violence in the Qalamoun area intensified on Friday.
Both the regime, backed by fighters from powerful Lebanese Shiite movement Hezbollah, and rebels including jihadists affiliated to Al-Qaeda have bolstered their forces in the area.
Qalamoun, which has a strong rebel presence, is strategic because it borders Lebanon and is used as a rear base for operations around the capital.
For Assad s regime, it is important because it is on the road linking Damascus to the central province of Homs and also houses weapons depots.
