DAMASCUS – A blast in the Syrian Arab Republic coastal city of Latakia killed at least three people and injured 12 on Saturday, state media reported, with the cause still unclear.

“The blast in the Al-Rimal neighborhood of Latakia city has so far resulted in three deaths and 12 injured,” state news agency SANA said citing provincial authorities.

It added that “civil defense teams and residents are still searching for others injured and missing.”

A resident of the city, Ward Jammoul, 32, told AFP that she heard a “loud blast,” adding that she “headed to the site and found a completely destroyed building.”

She said civil defense personnel and ambulances were present at the site, alongside “a large number of people who had gathered to look for those trapped under the rubble.”

An image carried by SANA showed a large plume of smoke rising over a populated neighborhood.

No other details could immediately be confirmed.

AN-AFP, 15 March 2025