Syrian rebels blew up a hotel used by President Bashar al-Assad’s forces in the northern city of Aleppo on Thursday (May 8), destroying the building and causing widespread damage, state media and a monitoring group said.
Video posted to a social media website showed a large cloud of smoke and rubble rising from a site believed to be that of the Carlton Hotel.
Reuters is unable to independently verify the content of this video, which has been obtained from a social media website.
The rebels detonated explosives in a tunnel underneath the hotel, which is situated next to Aleppo’s medieval citadel, sources said.
The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said there were fatalities in the blast but gave no details. State television said the hotel was destroyed and several nearby buildings were damaged.