31 Syrian soldiers killed by rebel bomb blast North of the capital, Syria's air force launched air raids on Qara near the border with Lebanon as loyalist forces tried to storm rebel positions in the town, the Observatory said. "Since the morning, the town of Qara has been hit by air strikes," Mr Abdel Rahman said. Warplanes bombarded the town heavily yesterday (Saturday). Regime troops are trying to storm it and to drive the rebels out. Elsewhere in Syria on Sunday, Damascus and several parts of the south were hit by a power cut lasting several hours. Power cuts have become regular in Syria as the armed conflict that started in March 2011 as a rebellion against the Assad regime has intensified. Also on Sunday, mortar rounds hit areas of central Damascus, killing at least two, reports claimed. The escalation of violence in and around Damascus comes as loyalists advancing towards Aleppo. On Sunday, rebels shot down a warplane over the east of the city, activists reported. More than 120,000 people have been killed in Syria's brutal war, and millions more forced to flee their homes.