At least 15 killed in Syria clashes

NICOSIA: Deadly clashes in central Syria and an ambush on a bus transporting soldiers near Damascus claimed at least 15 lives on Saturday, according to activists and state media reports.

Soldiers clashed with deserters in the restive central town of Rastan in Homs province, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said.

Rami Abdel Rahman, who heads the Britain-based watchdog, told AFP three deserters were killed in Rastan's fighting, while five soldiers were killed in similar clashes in nearby Al-Hula, also in Homs province.

The Observatory also reported fierce clashes in the outskirts of Damascus as security forces backed by tanks raided the towns of Saqba, Hamuriyeh, Jisrin and Erbin. There was no immediate word on casualties in these areas.

Meanwhile, an ambush on a bus traveling near the rebel stronghold of Douma, just north of Damascus, left seven Syrian soldiers dead, the official SANA news agency reported, blaming the attack on a "terrorist group."

The ambush came a day after two separate attacks, including a car bombing, killed 12 members of the security forces, according to the Observatory.

Damascus does not recognise the scale of the protest movement that erupted in mid-March, insisting instead that it is fighting "terrorist groups" seeking to sow chaos in the country as part of a foreign-hatched conspiracy.

Elsewhere, Observatory said a child was killed in the oil province of Deir Ezzor when a shell struck his house, and a pipeline was also ablaze in Quriah in Deir Ezzor after being hit by heavy machinegun fire.

These reports could not be independently verified because of government restrictions imposed on journalists covering the unrest in Syria, which broke out last March and has claimed more than 5,400 lives, according to UN estimates.

On the diplomatic front, the Syrian opposition said it would ask the UN Security Council for protection, and an Arab League official told AFP the pan-Arab body would suspend its mission to the crisis hit country. (AFP)