DAMASCUS, April 25 (Xinhua) -- A powerful explosion shook the al-Mina al-Bayda area in Syria's Latakia countryside on Friday, the Britain-based war monitor Syrian Observatory for Human Rights reported.

Ambulances rushed to the scene following the blast. There were no immediate official reports on the casualties or damage. The cause and source of the blast remained unknown.

The al-Mina al-Bayda area has been targeted by Israeli airstrikes twice since the fall of former Syrian President Bashar al-Assad. ■