Opposition activists said the attack hit a public area in the eastern Damascus suburb of Hamouriyeh on Friday. The British-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights put the death toll at 32, including six children.

Videos posted online by various opposition groups, including the Syrian Media Organization and the Shaam News Network, showed the aftermath of the blast, including dead bodies and damaged buildings.

The grassroots Local Coordination Committees said on Facebook that the strike hit a public square as people were leaving a mosque after Friday prayers.

The UN says more than 200,000 people, mostly civilians, have been killed over the past four years in Syria's civil war, which began as an uprising against the government of President Bashar al-Assad.

jr/sb (Reuters, AP)