Syrian PM defects to opposition

TV station bombing

In a separate development, a bomb ripped through the third floor of the state TV building in Damascus on Monday, shattering several offices and wounding at least three employees, Syrian TV said.

A Syrian security force inspects the scene after a bomb ripped through the third floor of the state TV building in Damascus, Syria, on Monday. The bomb shattered several offices and wounded several employees, Syrian TV said. Sana via Associated Press

The explosion was the latest in the Syrian capital, which has seen a string of suicide attacks and other bombings in the past few months as the country's civil war has escalated and the rebels grow bolder in their tactics. The TV building, which also houses state-run radio, is located at the Umawiyyeen roundabout in central Damascus.

After Monday's blast, the TV remained on air despite what was another severe breach of a state institution and a heavily guarded area in the Syrian capital. A bomb that exploded in the state security headquarters in Damascus on July 18 killed four of Syria's top security leaders.

A pro-government private Syrian TV station, Al-Ikhbariya, broadcast images of the damage at the state TV building. The footage showed destroyed walls, overturned desks, blown-out cabinet doors, broken glass and dangling electricity cables. A few TV workers were shown tending to a wounded colleague.

Information Minister Omran al-Zoubi said the bomb blast caused heavy material damage and light injuries among the employees.

He blamed Qatar, Saudi Arabia and Israel for the attack. Syrian authorities accuse the Gulf countries and Israel of supporting the rebels fighting against Assad's troops and fueling the insurgency in Syria.