A car bomb blast killed at least17 people and wounded 14 others in the Syrian capital of Damascus this morning, the state-owned Syrian TV reported.

The car, equipped with 200 kg of explosives, exploded at about 8:45 local time (0545 GMT) at the junction of Zeinab on the airport road in southern Damascus, the report said.

All the victims were civilians, it added, saying an anti-terrorism unit has launched investigation into the attack.

It was the first explosion in the Syrian capital since February when Shiite militant group Hezbollah leader Imad Moughniyah was killed in a car bombing in a residential neighborhood of Damascus.