Rebel rockets hit Damascus, killing 3, wounding dozens
BEIRUT — A rebel shelling barrage targeting Damascus early Thursday left at least three people dead and dozens wounded in the Syrian capital, according to government and opposition accounts.
The attack was the second major rocket and mortar strike in recent weeks on the capital, which is under tight military control. Central Damascus neighborhoods have largely been spared the massive destruction and fighting evident in many outlying districts.
Video from Damascus showed plumes of smoke rising from various neighborhoods, including the historic Old City and several upscale residential districts. Residents reported repeated thuds from the shelling.
The attacks come as a rebel commander based outside the capital vowed to rain destruction on Damascus in retaliation for government bombardment of opposition-held areas.
The official state news agency reported at least three civilians killed Thursday and 30 wounded, some in critical condition, along with damage to cars and buildings.
State media blamed the attack on “terrorists,” the government’s term for rebels fighting to overthrow the government of President Bashar Assad.
Thursday’s bombardment consisted of at least 63 rockets, according to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a pro-opposition group based in Britain.
Rockets and mortar shells fired from rebel-controlled areas outside the capital have periodically hit Damascus, causing numerous civilian casualties. But Thursday’s barrage and an attack on Jan. 25 that reportedly killed seven were especially intense.
The observatory said Thursday’s assault was carried out by the Army of Islam, an extremist faction based in the eastern Ghouta region outside Damascus. The Syrian military has been unable to win back the Ghouta area, which has been largely under control for years.
The Army of Islam, regarded as the most powerful rebel group in the Damascus area, is part of a larger alliance, the Islamic Front, with links to alQaida.
The Army of Islam’s leader, Zahran Alloush, has strong ties to Saudi Arabia, which has aided anti-government rebels and called on Assad to step down.
Alloush was released from a Syrian prison in mid-2011 as part of a government amnesty.
The almost four-year Syrian conflict has resulted in tens of thousands of deaths, left towns and neighborhoods destroyed and forced millions of people to flee their homes.
All diplomatic efforts to end the war have failed. Large swaths of Syria remain under the control of radical Islamist groups.
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