The Observatory said a vehicle bomb exploded and as people began to flock to the site two suicide bombers detonated explosive belts. Secretary of State John Kerry called Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov to urge him to pressure the Syrian regime to stop airstrikes against the moderate opposition and civilians.
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Spokesman Stephane Dujarric said Monday that Ban was especially concerned about escalating military activity in and around Damascus and Homs, which is causing a rising number of civilian casualties.
News agency AFP reported that over 100 people were killed in the bombings; sadly, this toll is expected to mount.
The blasts reflect brutality of the terrorist Daesh group which pays no attention to the human life and dignity, the spokesman said.
Another bomber blew himself up in a residential area in the west of the city, according to Sana. It says intense ground fighting has erupted around the village of Heisha.
Konashenkov said in a statement that satellite images showing burned shells of helicopters and trucks at the Diyas air base reflect the damage from months of clashes in the area between Syrian government forces and militants.
The coastal strip of Syria is dominated by members of the Alawite minority, which makes up about 10 per cent of the Syrian population but accounts for most of the regime’s inner leadership circle, including President Bashar al-Assad and his family.
Speaking Monday to journalists in Moscow, Dmitry Peskov said the situation “demonstrates the need to continue vigorous steps to continue the negotiation process”.
Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant’s main news outlet, Amaq, issued a single line statement saying the group had attacked “gatherings of the Alawites”.
Four bombings targeted bus stations in the port city of Tartous and in Jableh. The targets included the emergency entrance of the Jableh National Hospital, it said.
The attacks are a rare occurrence in the normally quiet and pro-government cities.
Tartus and Jableh are closely linked to the Russian involvement in the Syria conflict.
120 people were killed on Monday in a wave of bombings claimed by the Islamic State (IS) group in northwestern Syria, the deadliest attacks yet in the regime’s coastal heartland.
State media reported that a vehicle bomb and two suicide bombers attacked a petrol station in Tartous.
In Tartous, more than 33 people were killed and 47 injured, Sana said. Two of the blasts in Tartous also occurred at a bus station.
The bloodshed started at 7am BST with three explosions at a bus station in Tartus, where regime ally Russian Federation has a naval facility.
There was no immediate official toll for simultaneous blasts in the coastal city of Jableh to the north. IS holds the center of Garma and some areas on its outskirts. The city of Tartous was then hit by suicide bombers. A second explosion went off inside the base afterwards, killing seven soldiers. Dozens more were wounded, including 12 in critical condition, according to security officials.
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Moderate and ultraconservative Sunnis now form the backbone of the rebel movement against the government in the surrounding regions.
