Syria 'air strike' kills 30 civilians as fighting rages

SYRIA: At least 30 civilians were reported killed Thursday in a massive explosion in northeast Syria as state media blamed a helicopter gunship crash on an accident but monitors said rebels shot it down. Dozens more people were wounded in the blast at a petrol station in the northeastern village of Ain Issa, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said. Activists said it was an air strike.

"At least 30 people were killed and 83 were injured, although unconfirmed sources say the number of dead was actually more than 50," Observatory director Rami Abdel Rahman told AFP.

"Lawyers and activists in the area say the blast was caused by aerial bombardment," the Britain-based watchdog added.

Activists said the petrol station, in Raqa province, was hit by a warplane.

"The petrol station is the only one that is still open to customers in the area, and it was packed," a media activist who identified himself as Abu Muawiya told AFP via Skype. "It was hit by a fighter jet. "The only reason why it would strike the petrol station with a jet is to kill the highest number of people possible," he charged. It was impossible to verify the claim.

The deaths came a day after Syrian rebels seized the Tal al-Abyad border crossing between Raqa province and Turkey in heavy clashes with regime troops.

The blast at Ain Issa was some 40 kilometres (25 miles) south of the border post.

The rebel Free Syrian Army battled (FSA) government troops in Raqa city, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said.

"Initial reports indicate that several troops were killed or injured," it added.

The military helicopter that went down outside Damascus crashed after an accident with a civilian aircraft, state television said.

"This morning's helicopter crash resulted from an accident in the air when the helicopter's rotor clipped the tail of a Syrian Air plane carrying 200 passengers," it said.

It cited air traffic controllers at Damascus airport and Syrian Air as saying the airliner landed safely. Earlier, the Observatory reported the helicopter was downed by rebels following a series of explosions in the restive town of Douma, northeast of the capital. AFP