Damascus, July 22 -- Syria's transport ministry said a freight train carrying phosphate derailed and caught fire Sunday after getting hit by explosives planted on the tracks by militants in the country's center.

The government-owned train was transporting phosphate from mines in Khunayfis in Homs province, and the ministry said technical teams were working to repair the railway and restore traffic.

Last week, militants also targeted a gas pipeline in Homs province.

A Russian company controlled by a childhood friend of President Vladimir Putin has secured a 50-year concession from the Syrian government for most of the output of the major phosphate field in Homs after the mines were liberated from the Islamic State group in 2017. The sam...