Massacre in Maaret al-Naaman as blast hits Damascus intelligence HQ

A suicide bomber on board a booby-trapped motorcycle blew himself up 300 meters away from the Syrian Interior Minister in Damascus’ Kfarsousa neighborhood that houses branches for Syrian security apparatuses, according to a security source which confirmed that the blast did not lead to any casualties.

This as Syrian warplanes launched new raids on the strategic city of Maaret al-Naaman and its surrounding areas, according to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights.    

44 people were killed including a number of children were killed in the raids, according to medics.    

This as, regime forces continue shelling the city of Ksayr in Homs, in an attempt to take control over the whole area, the Observatory added. 

Later on Thursday, Damascus accused Turkish and Saudi parties of concluding a "deal" to allow the transfer of a number of al-Qaeda militants to Turkey as a prelude to their infiltration into Syria, according to two similar cables sent from the Foreign Minister to the U.N. Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon and the president of the U.N. Security Council.    


International positions   

The U.N. envoy to Syria Akhdar Ibrahimi is expected to arrive in Damascus on Saturday, the Syrian Foreign Ministry told AFP.    

Ibrahimi said Wednesday in Beirut that if the government takes the first step, everyone he has talked to in the opposition will also observe the truce.     

In this regard, the spokesperson for the Syrian Foreign Ministry Jihad Makdissi said that Ibrahimi, who called on President Bashar Assad's regime to take the lead in a proposed cease-fire during Eid al-Adha, will be meeting with the Syrian Foreign Minister Walid Moallem on Saturday morning.  

On another note, Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad called for a ceasefire and a dialogue in Syria, but reiterated his rejection of a Turkish proposal stipulating a transition period without President Bashar Assad. "The solution must be made in Syria and decided by the Syrian people." 

For her part, the U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights (UNHCR) Navanethem Pillay urged the U.N. Security Council to speak with a unanimous voice in regards to the Syrian crisis, hoping that the situation in the country does not turn into another Srebrenica.   

Papal delegation to Syria       

Pope Benedict XVI is sending a delegation, including top Vatican officials and New York's cardinal, to Damascus to express solidarity with the Syrian people suffering in their country's civil war.         

The Vatican No. 2, Cardinal Tarcisio Bertone, said Tuesday that the delegation would to Syria next week if arrangements can be made. The group will consist of seven churchmen, including New York Cardinal Timothy Dolan and the Holy See's top official for inter-religious dialogue, Cardinal Jean-Louis Tauran.           

Bertone said church leaders "cannot be simple spectators" given the "immense" suffering in Syria, and said they are convinced the solution must be a "political" one.           

The delegation will express solidarity "to all the population" in the pope's name and offer encouragement to those seeking an accord respecting human rights. 


AP/LBCI