2d LD: 6 suicide bombers attack 2 security HQ in Syria's Homs, killing 42

Six suicide bombers detonated themselves in two security headquarters in Syria's central province of Homs on Saturday, killing at least 42 people, a monitor group and state TV reported.

Three of the suicide bombers went to the al-Ghouta area, and three others to the Mahata, to detonate themselves in the two security compounds, said the state-owned TV.

The TV added that the suicide attack was coupled with clashes in the targeted areas.

The governor of Homs, Talal Barazi, said most of the deaths were from the Syrian security personnel, adding that the head of the Military Intelligence Branch in Homs, Colonel Sharaf Hasan Daboul, was killed in the blast as well as the chief of the State Security branch of Homs, Colonel Darwish.

Barazi said the death toll is over 30 killed and 34 wounded, while the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights monitor group said 42 people were killed in the deadly explosions.

It's the first deadly bombing in a while in Homs, as the Syrian army became in control of the city, with efforts ongoing to dislodge the rebels from the countryside of that key province.

The governor said the wounded are receiving treatment in Homs hospitals, adding that the bombings came as a retaliation to the victories of the Syrian army on ground, and the "political victories" the Syrian delegation to the intra-Syrian talks in Geneva are making.

"Such escalations by the terrorists are not new to the Syrian people," he said.

Meanwhile, the state TV said that the al-Qaida-linked Nusra Front claimed responsibility of the series of the deadly bombings that rocked Homs.

It's worth noting that the Nusra Front was excluded, along with the Islamic State (IS) group, from a recent nationwide cease-fire that went into force in Syria on Dec. 30, and the group was also separated from other rebel groups during the Syrian talks in Astana. Endit