At least 15 people were killed and 50 others wounded Tuesday evening when three blasts rattled a suburb of the Syrian capital of Damascus, pro-government SAMA TV said.

Reports said the blasts were caused by three explosive devices that went off in a swift succession at a crowded bus stop in al- Worud square in Qudsaiah suburb.

Ambulances rushed to the site as flames and smoke spiraled above the area, which is dominated by the Alawite minority, an offshoot of Shiite Islam to which Syrian President Bashar al-Assad and the ruling elites belong.

It is the second attack targeting the Alawite-dominated areas in the country within 24 hours. A day earlier, a booby-trapped car went off in Mazzeh 86 area in Damascus and killed at least 11 people.

The anti-Assad movement is backed by the majority Sunni Muslims, who have grown more hostile towards the Shiites.?