Car bomb, shells hit Syrian town

A car bomb killed at least 20 people and wounded dozens more on Friday when it exploded in Rankus, 20 miles north of the Syrian capital, Damascus, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said.

Activists in a nearby town said the blast occurred in front of a mosque soon after Friday prayers. They gave a higher death toll of 37 and said more than 100 had been wounded.

One of the activists told Reuters that government forces began shelling the same area soon after the explosion, causing at least one more death.

Reuters could not independently verify reports from Syria because of severe reporting and security restrictions.

What began as a peaceful pro-democracy movement two and a half years ago has turned into a civil war in which more than 100,000 people have been killed. 

Reuters