JOIN USAt least 29 students were killed along with their teacher Tuesday after their school building was hit by a mortar shell on the outskirts of Syria's capital city of Damascus, Xinhua reported.
The mortar was fired by "terrorists", reported state-run SANA news agency, without giving any further details.
In separate incidents, three people were killed Tuesday after armed men fired multiple mortar shells at two towns in the countryside of the Homs province, media reports said.
The latest incidents have come amid ongoing clashes between the Syrian troops and rebel fighters in suburbs of the capital Damascus, including Daraya and other southern suburbs.
Opposition activists also reported heavy shelling by government troops on hotspots around Damascus and elsewhere in the conflict-torn country.