Rockets and shells fired by the Jaysh al-Islam or Islam army landed in the very heart of the Syrian capital, media report citing numerous witness accounts.
#*ModerateRebels* shot over 40 rockets on #Damascus #Syria this morning. pic.twitter.com/vJ33hyOZGo
— EnaLolena (@EnaLolena) February 5, 2015
Rocket rain on #Damascus center by Jaish al-Islam (Islamist rebel force), 2nd time in less than two weeks. That's something new. #Syria
— Raniah Salloum (@Ranyah) February 5, 2015
Over 30 rockets so far on #Damascus #Syria pic.twitter.com/1xzGKUMiYM
— Elijah J. Magnier (@EjmAlrai) February 5, 2015
The rocket attack was apparently in revenge for airstrikes by forces loyal to Syria's President Bashar al-Assad in Eastern Al-Ghouta, a rebel stronghold in Damascus.
I am sure @zahran1970 is enjoying these pictures of school kids taking cover in #Damascus #DamscusUnderAttack pic.twitter.com/egRjP0lkvn
— Baibars Abou Fadel (@KeepingtheLeith) February 5, 2015
Schools were closed due to the strikes and local residents were forced to take shelter from the attack.
In a Twitter post earlier this week the Islam Army's leader Mohammed bin Abdullah Zahran Aloush warned that Damascus was a "military zone" and that his group would respond to airstrikes by the Syrian military on Ghouta, which left dozen people killed.
