BEIRUT: A massive explosion hit near the Damascus International Airport in the early hours of Thursday morning, a monitoring group said, without specifying the cause.
“The blast was huge and could be heard in Damascus,” said Rami Abdel Rahman, head of the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights.
The Damascus International Airport lies about 25 kilometers southeast of Syria’s capital.
The Britain-based Observatory, which gathers information from sources across war-ravaged Syria, said it had confirmed the explosion had not taken place inside the airport itself.
“It’s unclear what caused the explosion, but there fires raging at the site,” Abdel Rahman told AFP.
More than 320,000 people have been killed since Syria’s conflict erupted in 2011 with widespread anti-government protests.
While Damascus has remained relatively insulated from the violence, fierce fighting has raged on the outskirts of the capital in recent months between rebel groups and government forces.
’Huge’ explosion near Damascus Airport: monitor
’Huge’ explosion near Damascus Airport: monitor
US envoy calls for ceasefire deal in northeastern Syria to be maintained
- Tom Barrack, ambassador to Turkiye and special envoy for Syria, reiterates Washington’s support for Jan. 18 integration agreement between Syria’s government and Syrian Democratic Forces
LONDON: Tom Barrack, the US ambassador to Turkiye and special envoy for Syria, on Monday reiterated Washington’s desire to ensure the ceasefire agreement in northeastern Syria between Syria’s government and the Syrian Democratic Forces continues.
In a message posted on social media platform X, he wrote: “Productive phone call this evening with his excellency Masoud Barzani to discuss the situation in Syria and the importance of maintaining the ceasefire and ensuring humanitarian assistance to those in need, especially in Kobani.”
Barzani has been the leader of the Kurdistan Democratic Party since 1979, and served as president of Kurdistan region between 2005 and 2017.
The current present, Nechirvan Barzani, previously welcomed a recent decree by the Syrian president, Ahmad Al-Sharaa, officially recognizing the Kurdish population as an integral part of the country.
Barrack reiterated Washington’s support for efforts to advance the Jan. 18 agreement between Syria’s government and the SDF to integrate the latter into state institutions. The SDF is a Kurdish-led faction led by Mazloum Abdi that operates in northeastern Syria and recently clashed with government forces.
On Saturday, the Syrian Arab News Agency reported that the Syrian Ministry of Defense had announced a 15-day extension of the ceasefire deal.
