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Suicide blast kills 25 in Damascus

Reuters, Amman
A suicide bomber killed about 25 people and wounded 46 in Damascus yesterday, Syria's state news agency Sana said, in the third such attack in the Syrian capital in a month.
The blast occurred two days before an Arab League committee was due to discuss an initial report of Arab observers who are checking Syria's compliance with an Arab plan to halt President Bashar al-Assad's crackdown on unrest. Syrian state television showed body parts, bloodstains and broken glass from the blast in the central Maidan district, along with people shouting that this was the work of "terrorists." Several riot police shields could be seen in a wrecked bus, which was among several damaged vehicles.
"Immediate information indicates that a suicide terrorist blew himself up at a traffic light in the Maidan neighbourhood," state television said. "There are dozens of dead and wounded, mostly civilians."
State television did not immediately confirm the death toll given by SANA and the semi-official Addounia television. Syria bars most independent journalists from the country, making first-hand reporting impossible.
Meanwhile, the Arab League's special committee on Syriais due to meet in Cairo Sunday to debate the initial findings of the mission, which has been criticised by Syrian activists who question its ability to assess the violence on the ground.
The meeting may decide whether to continue the mission or to refer Syria to the United Nations Security Council, perhaps paving the way for some form of international action, a scenario that many Arab countries are keen to avoid.
Arab government sources said Thursday the League monitors would pursue their mission in Syria, despite criticism from Qatar's prime minister that they had made "mistakes."
The monitors began work on the streets on December 26 to try to verify whether the government was keeping its promise to pull troops and tanks out of cities and free thousands of detainees.
The Free Syrian Army (FSA), an armed opposition force composed mainly of army deserters, condemned the Maidan attack and cast the blame on the Syrian authorities themselves.
But an opposition activist, who asked not to be named, suggested that Islamist militants might be involved.
Meanwhile security forces killed four protesters in Hama yesterday when they shot at people shouting anti-Assad slogans as they emerged from the Amer bin Yasser mosque, activists said. Snipers were posted on rooftops in the Qusoor district, they added.
Syria has been racked by a popular uprising against Assad in which the United Nations says more than 5,000 people have been killed. The government says armed "terrorists" have killed 2,000 members of the security forces during the revolt