Syrian rebels capture key military base, four die in Palestinian refugee camp in Damascus

Rebels in Syria captured a key military base in the far eastern borderlands with Iraq.

The base in Deir al-Zor province, which is said to contain artillery ammunition, is near the strategically important border with Iraq and near Syria's main oilfields.

GlobalPost reported recently that Syrian rebels were making gains in that province.

Last week, opposition fighters said they had captured an airport in Deir al-Zor near the Iraq border used by the Syrian air force.

Syria's eastern provinces are mostly empty swathes of desert and are the least populated part of the country.

The Syrian military and rebels are in a battle to control the borders of the country, which are strategically important for arms flows.

On Friday, the Independent reported that four people were killed in a bomb blast in a Palestinian refugee camp near Damascus.

The attack in the Yarmouk camp was aimed at the leader of the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine-General Command, an armed Palestinian group that supports the Assad regime.

It is believed the attack was planned by the Free Syrian Army.

The north of Syria, particularly around Aleppo, is still seeing heavy fighting with both sides locked in a stalemate.

Air strikes, mortar attacks and snipers have ensured Aleppo, Syria's largest city, continues to be under siege.

GlobalPost reported Friday that the death toll in Syria may have surpassed 40,000.