At least four people were killed Monday when an explosion rocked Syrian government stronghold Latakia, reported AFP.
It is uncertain what caused the explosion, as conflicting reports emerge.
An AFP correspondent witnessed a column of smoke and flames after hearing an explosion in Latakia’s Mar Taqla neighborhood.
Residents say the explosion struck an apartment, setting the home on fire and killing a father, his two children, and a neighbor, according to AFP.
The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights confirmed that an explosion in Latakia had killed four people, including two children.
Witnesses told AFP the explosion seemed to be from rocket fire, however opposition forces have not been known to be close enough to the coastal city to fire rockets on it.
The blast occurs amidst heightened worries of attacks on Syria’s coastal region after an insurgent alliance that included al-Nusra Front last month overran Jisr al-Shughur in neighboring Idlib province.
Latakia province, which has avoided the worst of Syria’s violence since the uprising that began in March 2011, has been a stronghold of support for President Bashar al-Assad’s government
