DAMASCUS - A powerful blast, believed to have been caused by a suicide car bomb, rocked the vicinity of a police academy in a suburb of the Syrian capital of Damascus Monday night, local media said.

The pro-government al-Ekhbaria TV said the blast shook the eastern suburb of Qaboun, a hotspot in Syria's 23-month-old conflict, while other pro-government media said the blast has targeted the police academy in al-Qaboun and a nearby military checkpoint.

Meanwhile, activists' networks said the blast was followed by intense shooting from the adjacent Abbasyeen Square.

On Thursday, a powerful blast rocked a busy intersection in Damascus and claimed the lives of 56 people. The government accuses radical groups affiliated with al-Qaida of being behind the series of explosions that have been rocking Syria over the past year.