Syria national security chief dies of blast wounds: TV

DAMASCUS: General Hisham Ikhtiyar, the head of Syrian national security wounded in a Damascus bomb blast that killed three senior officials, died of his wounds on Friday, state television announced. "The leadership of the (ruling) Baath party offers its condolences to the people on the death of the comrade, General Hisham Ikhtiyar, chief of national security, who succumbed to his wounds before noon," the broadcaster said.

Ikhtiyar was wounded along with interior minister Mohammed al-Shaar in the Wednesday bombing at National Security headquarters, which was claimed by the rebel Free Syrian Army. Defence minister General Daoud Rajha, Assad's brother-in-law Assef Shawkat and General Hassan Turkmani, head of the regime's crisis cell on the uprising, were all killed in the explosion.