2 Car Bombs Kill Dozens in Damascus

Twin car bombs ripped through a Damascus suburb today, killing at least 34 people and leaving dozens critically wounded, according to state media and hospital officials. State news agency SANA said two cars packed with explosives detonated within five minutes of each other early in the morning just before employees were arriving to work. They went off in a parking lot in the eastern Jaramana suburb, a district mostly loyal to President Bashar al-Assad and populated mostly by Christians and Druse, a minority sect.

The blasts shattered windows in nearby buildings, littering the street with glass and debris. Human remains were scattered on the pavement, amid pools of blood. There were conflicting reports about the death toll, however. Two hospital officials said at least 30 bodies were brought to two nearby hospitals, while activists with the Britain-based Observatory for Human Rights say 29 people were killed. There has been no immediate claim of responsibility for the bombings. (More Syria stories.)