Beirut, Sep 16 (IANS/EFE) Opposition militants managed to infiltrate the al-Zahraa district in the centre of Syria's capital Damascus before they were driven back by government forces, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights has said.

The rebels engaged in a firefight with soldiers loyal to the regime of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, the observatory, a Britain-based entity with ties to the Syrian opposition, said Monday.

Three rebels were killed in the clash and authorities immediately began a house-to-house search along al-Zahraa's main avenue to look for additional infiltrators, the observatory said.

The well-defended heart of the Syrian capital is a stronghold for supporters of the Assad regime and has not been the scene of armed clashes since 2012.

Syria's civil war has caused the deaths of 191,369 people, including around 9,000 minors, according to the latest UN figures, which cover the period from the start of the conflict in March 2011 through April 30.