Car bomb kills 18 in Syrian rebel-held city

Syrian activists and a war monitoring group say that at least 18 people have been killed in a car bomb blast in the country’s largest rebel-held city of Idlib.

The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights says a car bomb was detonated in Idlib, the capital of a province with the same name.

Photos and video from the activist-run Thiqa News Agency and Baladi News Agency show heavy damage along what appears to be a major avenue in the city, with several buildings damaged and vehicles overturned.

First responders, ambulances, fire brigades are seen arriving at the scene.

No group immediately claimed responsibility for the bombing. The city and the province are controlled by several rebel factions and insurgents vying for dominance, the most powerful being an al-Qaida-linked group.

— AP