Damascus, Dec 22 (IANS): A booby-trapped car went off Sunday near an elementary school in Syria's central Homs province, killing five students and two school workers.

The explosives-laden car went off near the school in the eastern countryside of Homs province, Xinhua reported citing the state-run SANA news agency, adding that the toll may rise.

The east of Homs has re-emerged as a hotspot with renewed clashes between government troops and jihadist-linked groups.

Several schools in Syria have been attacked by mortars and bombs and many students lost their lives as a result of the violence.

The last incident took place in November when five schoolchildren were killed by a mortar shell that struck their mini bus in the capital Damascus.

Many Syrians have stopped sending their kids to schools out of fear of similar attacks, especially those in areas suffering daily mortar shelling by the rebels from hotspots near Damascus.