Bulldozers working on a hill above a Damascus school triggered a landslide that knocked down three classrooms, killing seven boys and injuring another six.
Two of the injured boys underwent surgery in a Damascus hospital tonight.
The bulldozers were working on a hill overlooking the boys' primary school in Al-Hameh, seven miles north of Damascus.
"A retaining wall built into the hillside collapsed and crushed three adjacent classrooms," said Mr Bashar Abdi, (36), who owns a shop near the school.
He said: "I rushed to the site and found the teachers crying. When I looked, I found three children dead and another trapped in the rubble and calling for help."
Rescuers pulled six boys from the rubble and found the bodies of seven others. It is believed that pressure and vibration from the bulldozers caused the retaining wall to collapse. The school was built in 1985.
PA