Highlights
- Militants attacked a military bus traveling on a desert highway in central Syria.
- 13 troops were killed including several officers.
Militants attacked a military bus traveling on a desert highway in central Syria on Sunday, killing 13 troops including several officers, state media reported. State news agency SANA said the militants used a variety of weapons in an attack in the Palmyra region, adding that 18 soldiers were wounded.
No further details were immediately available and no one claimed responsibility. In the past, Syrian authorities have blamed such attacks on Islamic State group militants who have been active in southern and central Syria, despite losing territorial control in the country since 2019.
In January, IS militants fired rockets and an anti-aircraft gun at a bus traveling in the same area, killing five troops.