Rebels from the Ahrar al-Sham movement killed Colonel Hassan Mahmoud Issa, a senior regime army officer, in the largely Alawite district of central Homs city.
The dominant Islamist opposition group said three soldiers were killed along with Col. Issa after rebels detonated an explosive device near his car in the neighborhood of Bab al-Dahab, according to an online statement.
Colonel Issa, a top commander in the paramilitary National Defense Forces, was responsible for all security checkpoints in Homs.
