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Mortar shells slammed into central Damascus on Tuesday, hitting an educational institute in a barrage that killed at least 12 people and wounded 50, state media reported.

"Twelve citizens were killed and 50 others wounded by terrorists who targeted the Shaghur neighborhood in Damascus with four mortar shells," the SANA news agency said, adding that two shells hit the Badr al-Din al-Hussein institute.

The Syrian government and media use the term "terrorists" for all those seeking to overthrow President Bashar Assad's government.

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights also reported the mortar attack, saying the toll was higher, with 17 people killed.

The Britain-based monitoring group said the death toll could rise as 14 among the 50 injured were in critical condition.

Observatory director Rami Abdel Rahman told Agence France Presse that the institute was an Islamic law studies centre, with students as young as 14.

But the ages of those killed in the attack were not immediately clear.

Rebel forces arrayed in positions on the outskirts of the capital regularly fire mortar shells and rockets into the heart of Damascus, often killing civilians.

Shaghur is a district in the Old City of Damascus, which has been hit by rebel fire frequently.