Booby-trapped car goes off in Damascus countryside

A booby-trapped car went off Thursday in the countryside of the Syrian capital of Damascus, leaving an unknown number of casualties. The car exploded near a government-run industrial research facility in Somarieh suburb, state TV said, without mentioning the exact casualty toll. Somarieh houses a residential compound of Syrian army and police officers. The Syrian administration is currently in the limelight as Washington is garnering support for its planned military action on Syria. The threats of strike followed the Syrian rebels' allegations that the Syrian government unleashed nerve gas attacks in the countryside of Damascus in August. The Syrian government totally rubbished the accusations, saying they were meant to draw in military intervention in Syria -- something the rebels had been craving for.