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13-07-2026
DAMASCUS: Syrian authorities say they have arrested the cell responsible for recent bombings in Damascus and the suspects are affiliated with ISIL (ISIS).
“Preliminary investigations into the members of the cell involved in the July 7 Damascus bombings have shown that the cell was affiliated with the IS group,” Ahmad Dalati, head of interior security for the Damascus region, said on Syrian state television on Thursday.
Two explosions rocked Damascus on Tuesday as French President Emmanuel Macron visited the city, killing one person and wounding 36. The previous week a bomb at a cafe popular with lawyers killed 10 people, with 21 injured.
Minister of Interior Anas Khattab announced earlier on Thursday that those behind the bombings had been captured. “The cell responsible for the terrorist bombings that targeted Damascus two days ago is now in our custody,” he said in a statement carried by the Syrian Arab News Agency.
He said authorities would reveal the identities of the cell’s members, their roles and all their links after investigations were completed.
The suspects were arrested during simultaneous raids across four neighborhoods in Damascus and its surrounding countryside.
Speaking alongside Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa following the blasts on Tuesday, Macron said: “We must at once stand alongside those who have been injured, continue to be uncompromising on security… but not let ourselves be destabilized.”
The bombings are the latest in a series of security breaches, and highlight the precarious situation in Syria, which remains politically volatile following the overthrow of Bashar al-Assad in December 2024.
On 8th July, Syrian authorities claimed one person has died after explosions rocked Syria’s capital Damascus on Tuesday as French President Emmanual Macron visited the city.
Syria’s state news agency, citing the Ministry of Health, reported the updated toll on Wednesday and said at least 36 people were wounded in the blasts.
The ministry said 31 of those wounded had “minor injuries”, while five others were hospitalized in “stable condition”.
The blasts struck central Damascus near the Ministry of Tourism and the Four Seasons Hotel, a day after Macron had stayed the night there, reported Al Jazeera’s Obaida Hitto from the Syrian capital.
Syria’s Ministry of Interior said one bomb had been placed inside a car parked on the side of a road, while a second device was planted in a rubbish container. It said they exploded “while preparations were under way” to dismantle them.
Macron, the first European Union head of state to visit Syria since the 2024 ouster of longtime leader Bashar al-Assad, had already left the hotel for Syria’s presidential palace and did not hear the explosions, according to his office.
Macron pledged to continue his visit Tuesday, saying in a news conference alongside Syria’s President Ahmed el-Sharaaa that they must “not let ourselves be destabilized”.
Al-Sharaa saluted Macron’s “courage” for carrying on with his visit despite the bombings but the attacks cast a shadow over the landmark visit as al-Sharaa tries to rebuild the country’s image after more than a decade of conflict. Five days earlier, a separate attack in Damascus killed 10 people in a cafe.
Syria’s Foreign Minister Asaad al-Shaibani said Macron’s visit marked a “pivotal point” in relations between the two countries, which signed 15 bilateral agreements spanning civil aviation, health, banking, water infrastructure and roads. (Int’l News Desk)
