(VOVworld) – Fighting in Syria has reached a new intensity. Five days of escalating violence in the capital city of Damascus culminated in a suicide bomb blast targeting the National Security Agency on Wednesday which killed 3 senior officials. Such developments have raised concerns of an imminent civil war. Anh Huyen reports…

Violence flared up in Syria on Sunday as the Free Syrian Army (FSA) launched a general attack they called “Damascus volcano and Syrian earthquake” and announced that “a war to liberate Syria has begun”. The bomb blast targeting the Syrian National Security Agency, the administration’s nerve center, took out Defence Minister Daoud Rajah, Minister of Internal Affairs Mohammad Shaar, and Deputy Defence Minister and brother-in-law of President Assad, Assef Shawkat.The bombing shows the depth of the infiltration of opposition rebels into the Damascus apparatus. It was carried out in the high-security Rawda district of by a second echelon guard of President Basshar Al Assad. The guard set off a package of explosives hidden in his belt. A Muslim rebel group called Liwa Al-Islam said the attack targeted a room called the “Damascus Crisis Control Room”. An  FSA spoksperson said this is the Volcano it has mentioned before and this is only the beginning.

Syria crisis: chaos in Damascus as Assad loyalists killed. (Photo: internet)

Meanwhile rebels also set off 5 big explosions in the Muhajireem district, northwest of Damascus and close to the base of Armoured Division No.4. Syrian government forces used machine guns and rockets to attack several residential areas. On Tuesday, Head of the Israeli Intelligence Agency Major General Aviv Kochavi said the Syrian government’s control of Damascus is weakening and that President Al Assad had ordered troops stationed near the Isreal border to support the government forces around Damascus.
The Syrian opposition say they have shot down a military helicopter in the Qaboun district of Damascus. FSA's Joint Command spokesman Kassem Saadeddine said victory is imminent and the civil war will not stop until rebel forces control the whole capital. On Wednesday, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said a decisive war for control of Damascus is taking place.
Western countries have responded variously to the bomb attack. On Wednesday some countries put their armies on high alert. US combat units in the region and units of Israel, Jordan, Saudi Arabia, Iraq, and Turkey prepared for action. Israeli Defence Minister Ehud Barak convened summoned an emergency meeting of intelligence and security officials to discuss the situation in Syria.
While Damascus is dealing with the bombing aftermath, the US has increased sanctions against dozens of Syrian ministers, part of a consistent commitment to pressure al Assad to end the bloodshed and give up power. British Foreign Minister William Hague said it’s urgent for the UN to take stronger action to end the conflicts and called on Russia and China to support a stronger UN resolution. Speaking at the Pentagon after talks with his visiting British counterpart Phillip Hammond, US Defence Secretary Leon Panetta said the Syrian situation is rapidly getting out of control and the international community should cooperate to hasten a transition.
At Kofi Annan’s suggestion, the UN Security Council postponed until today a vote on a resolution calling for more sanctions on Syria. Kofi Annan strongly condemned the bloody bomb attack in Damascus and called on the Security Council to take concrete actions to end the violence and open a way to a transition in Syria, a position fully supported by the EU, the UK, Germany, and France.