MOSCOW (AP) — Russian President Vladimir Putin issued a strong warning Wednesday against inciting violent regime change in the Middle East — an apparent rebuke to Western calls for an end to Syrian President Bashar Assad's rule.

Putin said the international community should operate as a united front to soothe the tensions in the Mideast and claimed that a bloody regime change would only fuel further unrest.

"Violence only begets violence," Putin said in a speech to foreign diplomats in Moscow.

The statement appeared to again pit Putin against President Barack Obama, who used his speech at the U.N. General Assembly this week to call for an end to the Assad regime over its violent crackdown on an uprising that began in March 2011.

Speaking about the rising violence in Syria, Obama said Tuesday that "the future must not belong to a dictator who massacres his people."

"Together, we must stand with those Syrians who believe in a different vision," Obama said.

As frustration deepens at the ongoing failure of U.N.-led measures to reach a solution on Syria, officials from a coalition including the United States, the European Union and the Arab League met in the Netherlands last week to devise new ways of isolating the Assad regime.

But Putin said Wednesday that attempts to circumvent U.N.-led diplomatic efforts would prove destructive.

"Such action is fraught with potential for destabilization and chaos," Putin said. "Life has recently given us proof that this is correct. It is time for us to draw lessons from what is happening."

Activists estimate that at least 30,000 people have been killed since the Syrian revolt began and hundreds of thousands have been displaced, many fleeing to neighboring countries such as Turkeyand Jordan.

In his speech, Putin also called for joint international efforts to counter terrorist threats across a number of Middle East nations, including Libya, Iraq, Yemen, Syria, Egypt, and Afghanistan.

"There can be no room for double standards. Terrorists should be given a hard and unanimous rebuff," he said.

LONDON (AP) — Markets were spooked Wednesday by scenes of violent protests on the streets of Athens and Madrid, which reignited concerns over Europe's ability to implement the measures needed to deal with its big debts.

A day after U.S. stocks suffered their biggest retreat in three months on comments from a leading official at the Federal Reserve, investors have grown jittery over the future of the euro. That heaped pressure on the single currency, which fell further below $1.30, and sent oil prices back below $90 a barrel.

The latest turmoil to afflict the 17-country eurozone began late Tuesday, when clashes broke out at a demonstration in Madrid that was protesting new austerity measures from the Spanish government. That was followed Wednesday by a general strike in Greece, which also turned violent.

In Europe, Spain's IBEX index led the list of fallers, closing 3.8 percent lower at 7,867.80, while the yield on the country's 10-year bond edged up to 6 percent.

Elsewhere, Germany's DAX closed 2 percent lower at 7,276.51 while the CAC-40 in France fell 2.8 percent to 3,414.84. The FTSE 100 index of leading British shares ended 1.6 percent lower at 5,768.09.

The falls marked a sharp end to weeks of upbeat investor sentiment. Markets have been buoyant since the European Central Bank unveiled in August a plan to lower the borrowing rates of countries like Spain and Italy and prevent a breakup of the 17-country eurozone. Fresh stimulus measures from major central banks also boosted sentiment.

"Looking at the sea of red across my screens today it seems that markets have finally woken up to the fact that the eurozone is still in deep trouble and that the ECB alone cannot successfully pilot a safe course out of its economic maelstrom," said Mike Ingram, market analyst at BGC Partners.

"European politicians need to take heed from U.S. Founding Father Benjamin Franklin when he said 'We must, indeed, all hang together, or assuredly we shall all hang separately'."

U.S. stocks also fell, with the Dow Jones industrial average down 0.1 percent at 13,450 and the broader S&P 500 index 0.4 percent lower at 1,436.

Wall Street also fell on Tuesday's, when investors were unnerved by a warning from the Fed's Charles Plosser that the central bank's efforts to support the world's biggest economy would likely fall short of its goals.

Earlier in Asia, Japan's Nikkei 225 stock average closed down 2 percent at 8,906.70 and Hong Kong's Hang Seng dropped 0.8 percent to end at 20,527.73. South Korea's Kospi shed 0.6 percent to 1,980.44. China's Shanghai Composite Index shed 0.6 percent to 2,004.17.

The tensions weren't just evident in stock markets — the euro was down a further 0.3 percent at $1.2854. Only last week, it was trading at multi-month highs around $1.32.

Meanwhile, the benchmark New York oil contract was $1.89 lower at $89.48 a barrel.

A woman cries near the body of her brother in front of Dar El Shifa hospital in Aleppo, Syria, Tuesday, Sept. 25, 2012. Over the past few months, rebels have increasingly targeted security sites and symbols of regime power in a bid to turn the tide in Syria's 18-month conflict, which activists say has left some 30,000 people dead.(AP Photo/Manu Brabo)

DAMASCUS, Syria (AP) — Two suicide car bombers struck Syria's army command headquarters Wednesday in Damascus, killing four guards and engulfing a key symbol of President Bashar Assad's embattled regime in flames, state media and witnesses said.

The twin blasts were followed by several hours of gunbattles between rebel fighters and regime forces in downtown Damascus. A reporter for an Iranian TV channel was killed by gunfire near the clashes, and a correspondent for another Iranian station was wounded.

The brazen rebel attacks in the heart of the Syrian capital highlighted their determination to bring down Assad as the country's civil war intensifies. It was the second day of bombings to shake the capital.

A Damascus school that activists said was being used by regime forces as a security headquarters also was bombed on Tuesday, wounding several people.

Near Damascus, two activist groups monitoring casualties said several dozen bodies were found Wednesday in a single location.

Syria's unrest began in March 2011 when protests calling for political change met a violent government crackdown. Many in the opposition have since taken up arms, and activists say the fighting has killed nearly 30,000 people.

Over the past few months, the rebels have increasingly targeted security sites and symbols of regime power in a bid to turn the tide in the fighting.

The rebels' Free Syrian Army claimed responsibility for Wednesday's bombings.

The blasts went off about 10 minutes apart, starting around 7 a.m., near the landmark Omayyad Square, and were heard several miles (kilometers) away.

Syrian state TV aired what it said was security camera footage of the blasts. In the first, a white van is driving on the road outside the military headquarters, then veers to the right and explodes. The second blast goes off inside the compound, with flames rising from behind trees.

Later, the army command building is seen engulfed in flames that sent huge columns of thick black smoke over Damascus for several hours.

The explosions shattered the windows of the Dama Rose hotel and other nearby buildings, as well as windshields of parked cars. Footage by another state-run TV channel, Ikhbariya, showed heavy damage inside the compound, with glass shards scattered across the floor and broken ceiling tiles.

The blasts caused fear among residents of a nearby upscale district, which has largely been sheltered from the violence that plagues other parts of the city.

"What if a random bullet killed one of my kids?" Nada, a 42-year-old mother of three who only gave her first name out of security concerns, said, crying over the telephone. The windows of her apartment were shattered and her furniture was damaged. "I only care about my children and I'm afraid of the gunfire," she added.

Gaith, 63, a retired civil servant who also just gave one name for the same reason, said he rushed to lock the gate of his building to keep rebels from hiding inside. "I don't want my place to collapse on my head," he said.

A Syrian army statement said "terrorists" — a term the regime routinely uses for the rebels — in the area simultaneously opened fire randomly to scare people, adding that authorities were pursuing the gunmen.

Witnesses said the explosions were followed by heavy gunfire that stretched on for hours near Omayyad Square and around the military compound. One witness reported seeing panicked soldiers shooting in the air randomly as they ran.

A group of army soldiers standing outside the buildings shouted pro Assad slogans, including: "Shabiha, forever, for your eyes, Oh Assad!" in reference to pro-regime militiamen.

Information Minister Omran Zoubi played down the rebels' ability to strike the nerve center of the Assad regime's battle for survival.

"Everything is normal," he told Syrian TV, which is near the army command center, in a phone call. "There was a terrorist act, perhaps near a significant location, yes, this is true, but they failed as usual to achieve their goals."

Zoubi initially insisted there were no casualties. However, Syrian state TV later reported four army guards were killed and 14 people were wounded, including civilians and military personnel.

The Iranian English language Press TV said one of its correspondents, 33-year-old Maya Nasser, a Syrian national, died in an exchange of fire in the area following the blasts. Another journalist working for Iranian Al-Alam TV was wounded, according to the station.

Press TV said Nasser was shot and killed by a rebel sniper while reporting on air. The station's newsroom director Hamid Reza Emadi blamed Turkey, Saudi Arabia and Qatar because they "provide weapons and militants to kill civilians, military personnel and journalists."

Iran is a supporter of the Syrian regime, while Turkey, Saudi Arabia and Qatar back the rebels.

Damascus, the stronghold of the regime, has been targeted repeatedly by the rebels. Previous bombings raised concerns that the al-Qaida terror network is becoming increasingly active in Syria. Jebhat al-Nusra, an extremist Syrian group, claimed responsibility for many of them.

On July 18, rebels detonated a bomb inside a high-level crisis meeting in Damascus that killed four top regime officials, including Assad's brother-in-law and the defense minister. Other large blasts have targeted the headquarters of security agencies in the capital, killing scores of people this year.

In other developments Wednesday, two activist groups monitoring casualties said dozens of bodies were found in a southern Damascus suburb. The reports could not be independently confirmed because of strict restrictions on foreign media.

The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said 40 bodies, including some of women and children, were found in the suburb of Thiyabiyeh. Rami Abdul-Rahman, the head of the Observatory, said he did not have details about how the victims were killed.

Another group of activists, the Local Coordination Committees, said 107 bodies were found, including women and children killed execution-style. It said the dead included nine members of the Al-Rifaie family whose throats were slit.

An amateur video, which could not be verified, showed the bodies of 18 men lined up on the floor of a room, some of them with marks of deep wounds.

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