Twin Car Bombs Kill Dozens in Syria

AFRIK UPDATE

                       Syrian men inspect the scene of a car bomb explosion in Jaramana, a suburb of Damascus

 (CNN) -- Twin car bombs detonated near Damascus on Wednesday, killing dozens and leaving a trail of destruction in suburbs near the Syrian capital, state media reported.

At least 34 people died in the "terrorist" bombings in the suburb of Jaramana, Syrian state TV said, quoting the interior ministry. At least 83 others were injured.

Opposition activists reported conflicting death tolls, with the Local Coordination Committees of Syria citing a nationwide toll of 24, including a dozen in Jaramana alone.

At the same time the car bombings went off, two simultaneous explosive devices detonated in al-Nahda and al-Qerayyat neighborhoods, both of which are Damascus suburbs. Officials did not provide a casualty count in those areas.

Government officials blamed the attacks on terrorists, a term Syria routinely uses for rebel fighters and extremist elements in the country.