Damascus Live Blog

This video allegedly shows smoke rising from the site of a blast in Adawi, Damascus, on Friday.

A blast has rocked the Syrian capital's central district of al-Midan, causing casualties, Syrian state media reported.

"The explosion took place in the al-Midan neighbourhood, near the Zein al-Abidin mosque," the state television reported.

Syria's pro-government Addounia television said that five people were killed and 20 wounded in what they described as an "apparent suicide bombing".

Opposition activists said the explosion occurred as worshippers were coming out of a mosque.

Earlier on Friday, a separate explosion was reported in an industrial zone of Damascus but it was unclear if there were any casualties.

Friday has typically been a day of anti-government protests since an uprising against President Bashar al-Assad began 13 months ago.

For more on recent developments, read our news story: Syria 'in contravention' of peace plan

[The handout image below, released by the Syrian opposition's Shaam News Network, purports to show the car bomb which exploded in the al-Sinaa neighbourhood of Damascus earlier today - Photo: AFP]

In strife-torn Syria, 7,195 candidates have registered to compete for 250 seats in parliamentary elections set for May 7, according to state news agency SANA.

The poll, in which 710 women are standing, will run amid an uprising against President Bashar al-Assad's regime, which broke out in March last year.

According to SANA, 14 million Syrians are eligible to vote in the poll, which anti-regime activists have described as a farce.

Candidates have started campaigning on the main squares and streets of Damascus.

"A job for each young man and woman" and "vote for your future" are just two of the slogans candidates are using to attract voters.

The poll, initially scheduled for September, was postponed after Assad announced the launching of a reform process.

Last month, parliament urged Assad to again put off the election to allow more time to implement the reforms, SANA reported. [AFP]

Prominent Palestinian activist and writer Salameh Kaileh was arrested overnight at his home in Damascus by Syrian authorities, human rights lawyer Anwar Bunni said on Tuesday.

"The security services entered Kaileh's home in the suburb of Barzeh at 2:00 am (2300 GMT Monday) and arrested him without explanation," said Bunni.

He said Kaileh's detention was clearly intended to "muzzle freedom of expression".

The 57-year-old author, born in Birzeit in the West Bank, is a well-known leftist who has authored a number of books on subjects ranging from Marxism to Arab nationalism.

He was imprisoned by the Syrian government in the 1990s for eight years.

Bunni, who heads the Syrian Centre for Legal Studies and Research, called for Kaileh's immediate release.

He accused the regime of also targeting doctors known to be providing aid to those wounded in the government crackdown against a 13-month revolt that has  left more than 9,000 people dead according to the United Nations.

"The Syrian authorities are not content to violate human rights on all levels, or to pursue and arrest those who denounce their violations, they also are working to stop all who treat the victims of those violations," the lawyer said.