WORLD> Middle East
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WORLD> Middle East
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Car bomb kills 17 in Syria near intelligence office
(Agencies)
Updated: 2008-09-28 08:28 Assad has pursued indirect peace talks with Israel, mediated by Turkey, and says he wants direct talks next year. Syria also has agreed to establish its first formal diplomatic ties with Lebanon, and says it has stepped up efforts to stem the flow of militants into Iraq. European, American and Arab officials are increasing their visits to the country after years of avoiding it. Most recently, French President Nicolas Sarkozy joined the leaders of Turkey and Qatar in a meeting with Assad in Damascus. US State Department spokesman Sean McCormack condemned the bombing. "This attack is particularly abhorrent as it comes during the holy month of Ramadan. We extend our deepest sympathies to the victims and their families," he said. Ibrahim Bayram, a political analyst at Lebanon's leading newspaper, An-Nahar, speculated Saturday's bombing was the result of a "tacit confrontation" between the Syrian government and al-Qaida-linked Sunni militants after Damascus tightened its long desert border with Iraq. "For months, the Syrians have been preparing to face such attacks after they decided to stop militants from crossing its border into Iraq," said Bayram, whose newspaper often takes an anti-Syria line. While calling the bombing a "terrorist act," Syrian Foreign Minister Walid al-Moallem denied it was a security breach. "I hope that you will be sure that security (forces) in Syria will always be awake and watching over the citizens," al-Moallem told Al-Arabiya satellite TV in an interview from New York, where he was attending the UN General Assembly meeting. The explosion occurred near the junction to the road going to Damascus' airport and a street leading to Sayeda Zeinab, a holy shrine for Shiite Muslims frequently visited by Iranian and Iraqi pilgrims about five miles from the bombing site. Mohammed Shubli, the owner of a toy shop, said he saw columns of smoke rising in the sky. "My house was completely damaged by the force of the blast," he said. The last major explosion to strike Damascus was in February, when a car bomb killed the commander of Lebanon's Hezbollah group, Imad Mughniyeh. Hezbollah and its top ally, Iran, blamed Israel for the assassination, but Israel denied any involvement. Last month, Brig. Gen. Mohammed Suleiman, a senior military officer close to Assad, was assassinated by a sniper on a yacht at a beach resort in the northern port city of Tartous. The last major bombing was on New Year's Eve in 1997, when a blast on a public bus in Damascus killed 12 people and wounded dozens. Syria accused Israel, but the Jewish state denied the charge. |
