DAMASCUS: A car bomb explosion in southern Damascus killed six people and wounded 20 others on Wednesday, state television said, while a watchdog gave a death toll of eight.

“The terrorist car bomb blast in Daf al-Shuk killed six people, wounded 20 others and caused material damage,” said the Syrian state broadcaster.

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said “a car bomb hit the area between Tadamun and Daf al-Shuk, targeting a vehicle carrying 24 passengers, killing eight people.”

The blast also “wounded 20 others,” it said, adding that it was unclear whether the victims were civilians or soldiers.

The Britain-based watchdog said clashes raged in Tadamun immediately after the blast.

The attack took place as international peace envoy Lakhdar Brahimi announced in Cairo that the Syrian regime and “most” rebel commanders have agreed to a truce during the four-day Muslim Eid al-Adha holiday, which begins on Friday.

President Bashar al-Assad's regime said it would take a “final decision” on the proposed ceasefire on Thursday, while the Free Syrian Army, the main rebel group, said it would cease fire during the four-day Eid provided government forces stop shooting first.

But the Islamist group the Al-Nusra Front, which has claimed the majority suicide bombings in the Syrian conflict, rejected the truce.

“There is no truce between us and this transgressing regime that is shedding the blood of Muslims,” it said in a statement posted on the Internet.