Roundup: U.S. embassy in Damascus attacked

The American embassy in Damascus was attacked by a group of militants on Tuesday morning, three militants were killed but no one in the embassy was hurt.

The attack occurred at about 10:05 a.m. (0705 GMT) and intense gunfire were heard in a following gun battle.

The district, where many foreign missions, vital security installations, and houses of the most senior Syrian government officials are located, has been sealed off by security guards.

According to the official SANA news agency, a terrorist group of four gunmen launched the attack using hand grenades and machine guns.

Syrian anti-terror forces exchanged fire with the attackers, killing three of them and wounding the fourth, SANA said.

The attackers used two cars, the first of which failed to thrust into the embassy and exploded outside.

The other was a booby-trapped white pickup parking in front of the embassy. The explosive devices hidden in the car were later successfully dismantled by Syrian experts.

A member of Syria's anti-terror squad was killed during the brazen attack.

A senior Chinese diplomat, Political Counsellor Li Hongyu, 41, was slightly injured by a flying shrapnel while he was standing on top of a garage within the Chinese embassy compound, which is located very close to the U.S. embassy.

Another 10 citizens were also injured in this terrorist operation, seven of whom were workers of a technical workshop of the Syrian Elecommunication Establishment on a repair mission in the area, a man and a woman of Iraqi nationalities.

The attack happened just one day after the fifth anniversary of the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks on the United States staged by Osama bin Laden's al-Qaida terror network.

"It's upset. Yesterday is the anniversary of the Sept.11 terrorist attacks, and today this happened," a Russian woman living nearby told Xinhua, who declined to name herself.

"I am very sad about this. But I don't think the Syrians have done this, maybe they are from other countries," she added.

Syrian-U.S. relations have been tense for many years with the two countries split on many issues, including Syria's role in Lebanon, the Middle East conflict and Iraq, and its support of militant groups in the region.

Washington recalled its ambassador to Syria following the assassination of former Lebanese premier Rafik Hariri, blaming Damascus for the murder. But Syria denied any role in the killing.

There was no official confirmation of the identity of the attackers.

Syrian security forces have clashed several times with militant groups since last summer, killing dosens of them and arresting nearly a hundred, in an effort to tighten security around the country.

In June, four gunmen and a guard were killed when Syrian security forces said they had foiled an attack by militants near the premises of state-run television in Damascus.

Source: Xinhua