Syria arms depot blast kills 14

At least 14 people were killed and 11 others injured in a massive explosion at a temporary arms and explosives storage facility in Syria’s northwestern Idlib province on Wednesday.

The blast occurred near the city of Sarmada, at a temporary warehouse in Burj Al-Numra village in rural northern Idlib, according to Syrian state television.

The facility was used to store weapons, leftover ammunition and explosives from the country’s long-running war.

Rescue and emergency teams rushed to the site after the explosion and launched a search and rescue operation.

The cause of the blast was not immediately known.

Syria has large quantities of unexploded ordnance, weapons and remnants of war scattered across the country after years of conflict, posing a serious risk to civilians.

The death toll may rise as rescue operations continue.

sks