Syria says at least 8 soldiers killed in ‘terrorist attack’

DAMASCUS, Syria – At least eight Syrian soldiers were killed in “a terrorist attack” on a military bus south of Palmyra in the eastern countryside of the Homs region in central Syria, the defense ministry said Tuesday.

“Eight soldiers and one civilian were killed, 13 others were wounded, among them two civilians, in a terrorist attack with an explosive device on a military bus in Syrian al-Badyiah to the south of Palmyra,” the Syrian News agency said, citing a Defense Ministry statement.

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a U.K.-based war monitoring agency that has been documenting violence in Syria since 2011, said the terrorist group the Islamic State is responsible for the attack. SOHR put the death toll at 14, including an officer, with 19 wounded.

No group has claimed responsibility for the attack.

Since the beginning of this year, the Syrian desert has witnessed a remarkable escalation in attacks by the Islamic State in various areas within the control of the Syrian government forces.

Although the Islamic State suffered military and territorial setbacks in Syria, the terrorist group remains active in several parts of the country, mainly in the Homs desert region.