Syrian Car Bomb Rocks Eastern City

Smoke rises from burning cars at the site of twin blasts in Damascuson May 10, a previous attack on a Syrian security base.

Syrian media reports that a suicide car bomb has struck a military compound in the eastern city of Deir el-Zour.

Pro-government television stations showed pictures of damaged buildings and vehicles and said there were an as yet undetermined number of casualties.

Security agencies in several Syrian cities have been targeted by a wave of explosions since late last year as violence has escalated with government crackdowns on protests.

The latest bombing follows a blast targeting an intelligence building in Damascus May 10.

UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said on May 17 he believed that "alarmingly and surprisingly," Al-Qaeda must have been behind the May 10 attack in the Syrian capital.

The waves of bombings are raising fears that Al-Qaeda-linked Islamist militants, possibly including fighters from neighboring Iraq, have made strong inroads into Syria's rebel movement.

Based on reporting by AP and AFP