Syria: Syrian government forces shell rebels in east Damascus
Syrian government forces have shelled the eastern suburbs of Damascus and clashed with armed rebels there, activists and residents say.
Residents reported hearing heavy gunfire from about 6:00am local time (03:00 GMT) on Monday. They said the capital was shaken by several loud blasts, possibly artillery fire, two hours later.
“Every one of them feels like an earthquake,” a resident in the central district of Adawi told the Reuters news agency, in a telephone call punctuated by two loud explosions.
The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a UK-based anti-government rights group, said that government forces were targeting rural areas around the Zamalka and Ain Terma suburbs on the eastern fringes of Damascus, a rebel stronghold in recent months.