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    May 09, 2012

Blast Erupts Near Syrian Monitors' Convoy

   VOA News
   Syrian army soldiers, are seen through a damaged military truck window
   which was attacked by a roadside bomb, in Daraa city, southern Syria.
   The explosion targeted the Syrian military truck just seconds after a
   team of U.N. observers passed by, May 9, 201
   Photo: AP
   Syrian army soldiers, are seen through a damaged military truck window
   which was attacked by a roadside bomb, in Daraa city, southern Syria.
   The explosion targeted the Syrian military truck just seconds after a
   team of U.N. observers passed by, May 9, 2012.

   An explosion has rocked military vehicles accompanying a convoy of U.N.
   monitors in Syria on Wednesday, a day after international mediator Kofi
   Annan warned that ongoing anti-government unrest could cause Syria to
   descend into civil war.
   The blast in the southern flashpoint city of Daraa left at least six
   soldiers wounded. The observer mission head, Major General Robert Mood,
   was part of the convoy but neither Mood nor any other monitors was
   wounded.
   The observers have been fanning out across Syria to monitor compliance
   with a shaky cease-fire, which is part of a peace plan brokered by
   Annan.
   On Tuesday, Annan said the observer mission was "possibly the only
   remaining chance" to stabilize Syria. After a U.N. Security Council
   briefing, he told reporters there was "profound concern" the country
   could otherwise slide into civil war.
   Meanwhile, the government resumed vote-counting from Monday's
   parliamentary elections that opposition groups dismissed as a sham.
   The state-run SANA news agency said officials had finished tallying
   votes in several several regions, including Idlib and Daraa.
   More than 7,000 candidates are vying for seats in the 250-member
   parliament. The election is a government effort to show that it is
   enacting democratic reforms, but opposition groups say the election
   lacks credibility because the government has continued its year-long
   crackdown on dissent.
   The government has blamed armed terrorist groups for much of the
   unrest.
   Deaths Across Syria Through May 6, 2012

voa

   The U.N. says more than 9,000 people have been killed since the
   violence related to the anti-government uprising which erupted over a
   year ago.

   Some information for this report was provided by AP, AFP and Reuters.
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