At least 13 people are dead after a car bomb exploded in the Syrian capital of Damascus on Sunday. The attack comes as Syria's President Bashar al Assad gave no commitment for a ceasefire, blaming the violence in his country on outside interference.
Reporter Rasha Elass in Beirut shares details with our Newscast desk:
"The bomb exploded in front of a police station that overlooks a busy square in Bab Touma, which is a historic Christian quarter in Damascus. It is not yet clear who was responsible for the attack.
"Meanwhile, international mediator Lakhdar Brahimi met with the Syrian president to push for a ceasefire during Islam's upcoming Feast of Sacrifice. But Assad said he can only support a truce if terrorists in Syria surrendered, and their foreign supporters stopped helping them. He was referring mainly to Turkey, Saudi Arabia and Qatar."
In Lebanon, the funeral for the anti-Syrian intelligence chief who was killed in a massive car bombing on Friday has erupted in protests. As the AP reports:
"Lebanese soldiers fired guns and tear gas to push back hundreds of protesters who broke through a police cordon and tried to storm the government headquarters in Beirut."
"The protesters blame Friday's killing on Syria — and they consider the government in Beirut to be far too close to the regime there. Lebanon for much of the past 30 years has lived under Syrian military and political domination."
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