No group has yet claimed responsibility for the attack.
By Shula Rosen
Explosions that struck Damascus during French President Emmanuel Macron’s visit to the Syrian capital on Tuesday injured 18 people, including four police officers, Syria’s state news agency reported.
A security source said the twin explosions occurred close to the Four Seasons Hotel. Syrian newspaper Al-Watan and Syria TV reported that two blasts were heard and that a large plume of smoke rose from the area.
Videos circulating on social media showed a vehicle engulfed in flames and bloodstains on a nearby street. The number of casualties was not immediately known, and no group immediately claimed responsibility for the attack.
Despite the explosions, the Elysee said Macron did not hear the blasts and later met Sharaa at the Syrian Presidential Palace. State television also reported that the two leaders held their planned talks.
Macron arrived in Damascus on Monday, becoming the first Western European head of state to visit Syria since the country’s new authorities assumed power in December 2024.
He was welcomed at the airport by Syrian Foreign Minister Asaad al-Shaibani, who also received French Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot.
Soon after arriving, Macron reaffirmed France’s support for Syria in a message posted online.
“I have come to express France’s commitment to the Syrian people. For a sovereign Syria, united in its diversity and at peace with its neighbors,” Macron wrote.
“Together, let us open a new chapter of stability and peace.”
Macron’s visit follows other high-level trips to Damascus this year by European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.
The French president’s trip is the first by a Western European leader since Syria’s new leadership took office in December 2024.
The cause of Tuesday’s explosions remained unclear, and no organization had claimed responsibility by the time Macron concluded his scheduled meeting with Sharaa.