A bomb attack in the northern Syrian city of Afrin killed three people and wounded nine others on Sunday, according to a war monitor, on the first anniversary of a Turkish offensive on the Kurdish-majority region.
Another blast hit Damascus, which is a rare occurrence in the Syrian capital, as it has been largely insulated from violence during nearly eight years of war.
The Syrian state news agency SANA said a “bomb blast” had hit southern Damascus “without leaving any victims.”
It added, “There is confirmation of reports that a terrorist has been arrested.”
However, the Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights war monitor reported a “huge explosion” near a military intelligence office in southern Damascus that left a number of people dead and wounded.
“The explosion took place near a security branch in the south of the city,” and was followed by shooting, said the monitor, which has a network of sources inside the country.
“There are some people killed and injured, but we could not verify the toll immediately.”
It was unclear if the blast was caused by a bomb that was planted or a suicide attack, according to the monitor.
There was no immediate claim of responsibility.
Meanwhile, Israel said it intercepted a rocket fired from Syria on Sunday after Damascus accused the Jewish state of carrying out airstrikes on the south of the country.
– with reporting by Agence France-Presse