BEIRUT: A car bomb killed at least 30 people on Friday in the town of Rankus north of Damascus, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said.

The Observatory said “tens” of people were injured in the blast, next to a mosque.

Rankus, which is some 30 kilometres (18 miles) north of Damascus, is a Sunni town that backs the Sunni-dominated opposition to the government of President Bashar al-Assad.

Local activists called on residents to avoid gathering for fear of additional attacks in the town, which has regularly been the scene of fighting between rebels and regime forces.