While Syria pledged to stamp out terrorism, the country has experienced the assassination of a senior military officer and two bombings that killed 28 people and injured 253 others.

Brig. Gen. Issa al-Khouli, head of the Hamish military Hospital, was shot dead outside his home in a northern neighborhood of Damascus on Saturday.

Al-Khouli was the first senior officer killed in Damascus since the eruption of protests against President Bashar Assad's government last March.

The assassination, together with two deadly blasts that ripped through the northern city of Aleppo on Friday, points to the escalated violence in Syria for which the government blames "armed terrorist groups."

The Foreign Ministry on Friday accused some Arab and Western countries of arming "terrorist groups" and held them responsible for the car bombings.

"This crime was committed by groups, which are receiving support from some Arab and Western countries that insist to harm the security and safety of Syria," the ministry said in a statement.

"Syria calls on the countries that have armed, financed, and harbored those groups to hand over the criminals to the Syrian authorities in accordance with resolutions of the international community regarding terrorism," the ministry said.

Meanwhile, the Ministry of Interior on Friday pledged to "stamp out terrorism" and to "hunt down those who compromise the security of the homeland and citizens."

In a statement carried by the state-run SANA news agency, the ministry pledged to continue its duty in persevering the country's security.

As Syria grappled with escalated violence at home, external forces continue to mount pressure on al-Assad

Saudi Arabia on Friday at the United Nations floated a draft resolution backing an Arab League call for Assad to step down. The assembly is due to discuss Syria on Monday and vote on the draft later in the week.

The draft echoed the one vetoed by Russia and China last week on grounds that the lopsided resolution would not bring the conflict to a satisfactory end, and instead would leave the already volatile country prone to more violence.

On Sunday, Arab League foreign ministers will meet in Cairo over the Syrian crisis which shows no signs of abating, with the expulsion of the diplomatic missions of Libya and Tunisia from Syria.

Syria's Foreign Ministry spokesman said Saturday that Damascus has given the ambassadors of Libya and Tunisia 72 hours to leave the country.

The Syrian embassy in Qatar was also closed, and Syrian ambassadors to Kuwait and Saudi Arabia have also been called back, Syria's Foreign Ministry spokesman Jihad Makdissi told reporters.

The expulsions came in apparent retaliation for similar actions taken against Syrian diplomats in the two countries.