BEIRUT—A missile barrage slammed into a suburb of Damascus, killing at least 40 people and wounding many others in the latest government attack on the rebel-held area, opposition activists said Friday.
The attack came as an international conference aimed at ending the Syrian conflict was getting underway in Vienna, Austria. With 19 foreign ministers attending, including those from regional powerbrokers Iran and Saudi Arabia, there was cautious hope the meeting would achieve a small breakthrough.
“I am hopeful that we can find a way forward,” U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry told reporters, adding: “It is very difficult.”
There were conflicting reports about the attack in Douma. The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights and the Local Coordination Committess group said government forces fired more than 11 missiles at a market, killing at least 40.
Both organizations and a third Douma-based activist network were reporting dozens more wounded in the mid-morning attack.
