DAMASCUS, Feb. 6 (Xinhua) -- At least 35 people were killed and another 30 injured Wednesday when twin suicide car bombs went off near a military security branch in Syria's central Homs province, a pro-government online news website said, as the country's state media denies reports about deteriorating situation in Damascus.
The twin blasts were carried out by suicide bombers that detonated their explosive-packed cars near the security branch in Palmyra countryside of Homs, Ajel News website said, adding that more than 30 people were also injured.
In the capital Damascus, meanwhile, intense clashes are currently taking place at the entrances of the Jobar suburb south of Damascus between the army and armed rebels, local media and activists said.
The drumbeat of shells has been ongoing across the capital since the wee hours of Wednesday amid reports that the army is beefing up presence at the entrances of Jobar in a bid to storm it.
Activists also reported clashes in the suburbs of Zamalka.
Activists said the rebels Free Army has declared the battle to "librate" Damascus in what they dubbed while the Syrian official media said the situation in Damascus is stable and denied reports of security deterioration in the capital.
Sources told Xinhua that the army has been planning to storm rebels' strongholds over the past couple of weeks, adding that civilians were advised to stay away from those areas for impending showdown.
Sources said the army has unleashed a strong firepower on many fronts around the capital.
Earlier in the day, pro-government al-Watan daily said Wednesday that the Syrian troops dealt "painful blows" to the armed rebels a day earlier in hotspots of Damascus and its southern outskirts as well as in Homs and Hama, killing hundreds of them.
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