Home World Middle East Syrian Defence Minister Killed Daoud Rajha was reportedly killed in a bomb explosion during a meeting with ministry and security officials. by Reuters July 18, 2012 Syrian Defence Minister Daoud Rajha was killed by a bomb which exploded during a meeting of ministers and security officials at a national security building in Damascus on Wednesday, state television said. “The Minister of Defence was killed by the terrorist bombing that targeted the national security building,” it added. A suicide bomber who detonated explosives at the meeting of ministers, was a bodyguard for the president’s inner circle, a Syrian security source said. Assef Shawkat, brother-in-law of President Bashar al-Assad, was also killed in the bomb attack, Hezbollah’s al-Manar television and a security source in Syria said. The security source told Reuters Shawkat died in a Damascus hospital where he was taken after the attack. Syrian Interior Minister Mohammad Ibrahim al-Shaar was also wounded in the explosion, al-Manar television said. Activists contacted by telephone reported an increased security presence around a hospital near the site of the reported explosion in northern Damascus, which they said indicated that senior officials had been wounded. Tags Breaking News World 0 Comments You might also like 19 injured after fire breaks out in a building in Abu Dhabi Two killed and over 100 injured in Abu Dhabi gas explosion The world offers tributes to Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan In pics: UAE President Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan with world leaders