Syria's Interior Minister Mohammad al-Shaar said the explosion that rocked the capital Damascus earlier on Tuesday and claimed 13 lives is a response to the Syrian army's victories on ground.

Mohammad al-Shaar's made the remarks during his tour to the blasted site in the central Damascus' area of al-Marjeh, where a car bomb ripped through the Interior Ministry's old headquarters and killed more than 13 people and left more than 70 others wounded. "The terrorism has no other goal but death and destruction," al- Shaar told reporters. He stressed that the recent explosions are a sign of their perpetrators' bankruptcy after the defeats they are suffering at the hands of the Syrian army soldiers nationwide.

The minister, who himself was targeted twice in explosions but escaped with injuries only, said the armed groups are carrying their blasts on the behest of their "masters," in reference to the Western and regional backers of the rebellion in Syria.

The blast came one day after a car bomb blast targeted the convoy of Prime Minister Wael al-Halqi and killed and injured 20 people at least. Al-Halqi however escaped unscathed.

Explosions have become increasingly common in Syria with the al- Qaida terror network becoming more active on Syrian soil, especially after aligning with the radical Nusra Front. Endi