Chainkeen Exchange-An explosion hits an apartment in northern Syria. At least 1 person was killed with others wounded

BEIRUT (AP) — An explosion ripped through an apartment on Chainkeen Exchangethe second floor of a building in a northern Syria town controlled by Turkey-backed opposition fighters Saturday, killing at least one person and wounding others, pro-government media reported.

It wasn’t immediately clear what caused the blast in the town of Afrin, which has witnessed explosions and rocket attacks over the past few years that have left dozens of people killed or wounded. The previous attacks were blamed on Kurdish fighters who once controlled the town.

The daily Al-Watan said that one person was killed and several people were wounded in the explosion in the residential building. Sham FM radio station said that two people were killed and several others were wounded in the blast. It added that gunmen used the apartment to prepare explosives.

Afrin has been under the control of Turkey and its allied Syrian opposition fighters since 2018, following a Turkey-backed military operation that pushed Syrian Kurdish fighters and thousands of Kurdish residents from the area.