Bomb attack near Syrian shrine kills eight

1 Nov 2012, 12:20 am   -   Source: AAP

A motorcycle bomb attack near a Shi'ite Muslim shrine has killed eight and injured dozens more, a human rights group says.

A motorcycle bomb attack near a Shi'ite Muslim shrine southeast of Damascus has killed at least eight people and injured dozens, a watchdog says.

State television has confirmed the blast, but puts the toll at six dead and 13 injured.

"At least eight people were killed and dozens were injured when a bomb planted in a motorcycle exploded outside the Yasser hotel, near the Shi'ite shrine of Sayyida Zeinab," the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said on Wednesday.

"A police source in Damascus province said an armed terrorist group set off an explosive device hidden in a rubbish bag ... in the Sayyida Zeinab area," state news agency SANA said.

The Sayyida Zeinab area has seen frequent violence in recent months, including a suicide bomb attack on June 14 that injured 14, according to state media.

The neighbourhood is disputed between rebels and the army.

It is home to the mausoleum of Sayyida Zeinab, the granddaughter of the Muslim Prophet Mohammed and is considered holy by Shi'ite Muslims.

On August 5, rebels fighting to oust President Bashar al-Assad's regime posted a video online saying they had kidnapped 48 Iranians from the area, claiming they were elite Revolutionary Guards.

They said three of them died a day later in government shelling.

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