DOZENS KILLED IN SYRIA NEAR SAYYIDA ZEINAB SHRINE.

Syria conflict: Dozens killed near Sayyida Zeinab shrine

At least 50 people have died in blasts near the Shia shrine of Sayyida Zeinab, south of Syria's capital Damascus.

The shrine, which is highly revered by Shia Muslims, has been targeted before, most recently in February last year.

It happened as the government and opposition groups gathered in Geneva in a bid to start talks aimed at a political solution to the conflict.

The attack, claimed by the Islamic State group, was aimed at disrupting the talks, the EU said.

Both the Syrian government and opposition are in Geneva but the talks have yet to begin. The main opposition group says the government must first meet key humanitarian demands.

US Secretary of State John Kerry urged both sides to seize the opportunity to end the bloodshed.

Mr Kerry said there was "no military solution" to the spiralling crisis, which he warned could engulf the region if the tentative UN-sponsored negotiations fail as previous attempts have.

-BBC.