BEIRUT (AP) — An explosion targeted the Syrian Interior Ministry building Wednesday in the capital, Damascus, state TV said. There was no immediate word on casualties.

Rebels fighting to overthrow Syrian President Bashar Assad have been making inroads in their advance toward Damascus, the seat of the government, in recent weeks. Fighting has intensified in the southern districts of the Syrian capital and its suburbs.

The conflict started nearly 21 months ago as an uprising against Assad, whose family has ruled the country for four decades. It quickly morphed into a civil war, with rebels taking up arms to fight back against a bloody crackdown by the government.