Syrian Observatory: 9 Security Forces Killed in Damascus Car Bomb

A car bombing in Damascus on Sunday killed at least nine security forces, a watchdog said, as aid groups urged the evacuation of civilians trapped in the embattled Syrian town of Qusayr.

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said the explosion, in the east of the capital, appeared to have been carried out by the extremist al-Nusra Front, which is allied with al-Qaida, although there was no immediate confirmation.

"At least nine regime forces were killed in the explosion of a car bomb near a police station in the Jubar neighborhood," Observatory director Rami Abdel Rahman told Agence France Presse.

Syrian state news agency SANA reported "preliminary information on a car bomb explosion in Jubar," but gave no further details.

The Observatory said fierce clashes between rebels and regime forces were ongoing in Jubar, a contested neighborhood which has been targeted by regime air strikes and mortar attacks for several months.

Elsewhere in the capital, the Observatory said, regime forces shelled the al-Hajar al-Aswad, Assali and Qaddam neighborhoods in the south and southwest of the city overnight.

The attack came as international aid groups called for the evacuation of civilians trapped in the flashpoint central Syrian town of Qusayr.

Regime forces launched an assault against the rebel stronghold two weeks ago, and concern has risen over the fate of thousands of civilians, including around 1,500 wounded residents.

Abdel Rahman told AFP on Saturday that "the opposition fighters are fighting with everything they've got.

"Regime forces are reinforcing the sites that they have north of the city," he said.

The group said at least 15 tanks were massed north of Qusayr, a prize for both the regime and the rebels as it links Damascus to the coast, and is near the Lebanese border, providing a key rebel conduit for weapons and fighters.

Abdel Rahman said around 1,000 wounded people were trapped inside Qusayr but U.N. officials suggested the figure could be even higher.