Beirut - A suicide bomber killed six soldiers Saturday in the southern province of Daraa, in a rare deadly attack against the cradle of the uprising that sparked Syria’s war, a monitor said.



SANA said several soldiers were wounded when “a terrorist detonated an explosive belt during an army raid”.

It was not immediately clear who was behind the blast, but pro-regime forces in Daraa province face explosions and gunfire on a near daily basis, although they are usually not deadly.

Earlier this month, six soldiers were killed in an explosion that targeted an army convoy near Yadud village, some seven kilometres outside the provincial capital of Daraa city, according to the Observatory.

Russia-backed government forces last summer retook the province, following a deadly bombardment campaign and surrender deals that saw part of the population board buses to a northern opposition holdout.

Government institutions have since returned, but army forces have not deployed in all of the province.

And local anger has grown after hundreds were detained despite the so-called “reconciliation deals”, and many others forcibly conscripted into Bashar Al Assad’s army.