Bomb Blast Kills At Least Nine in Damascus Cafe Near Court Complex

A bomb blast tore through a crowded cafe in central Damascus on Thursday, killing at least nine people and wounding 22, according to Al Jazeera and the BBC.

“A bomb blast tore through a crowded cafe in central Damascus on Thursday, killing at least nine people and wounding 22”

Al Jazeera

Al Jazeera reported that a person entered the cafe, placed an improvised explosive device (IED) under a table and left the building, possibly intending to reach the courthouse to carry out further attacks.

Al Jazeera

The BBC said the explosion targeted a cafe on Al-Nasr Street near the Court Complex in Damascus, and that initial procedures and investigations showed the blast was caused by a crudely made explosive device weighing about one kilogram and packed with metal shrapnel.

Syrian Interior Ministry officials said they imposed a security cordon around the blast site and forensic teams from the Criminal Investigation Department began work immediately, collecting forensic evidence, reviewing surveillance camera footage, and taking testimonies from witnesses and people in the vicinity.

Damascus Governor Maher Marwan said “bad actors” were trying to destabilise the country, adding on the courthouse steps that “those who shed the blood of Syrians will pay.”

The BBC quoted Damascus Governor Maher Marwan Adlabi telling reporters near the Court Complex: 'This case will not be registered as one against unknowns, and God willing those who tampered with this blood will be punished.'

Al-Jazeera Net

Al Jazeera said no group claimed responsibility for the blast, while analysts pointed to elements opposed to Syria’s transition following the downfall of President Bashar al-Assad’s government in December 2024.

Al Jazeera also described the Palace of Justice as holding high-profile trials, including Atef Najib, Wassim al-Assad, and former Grand Mufti Ahmad Badreddin Hassoun, as political analyst Kamal Abdo said there has been anger among remnants of the former government about the trials.

The BBC said the Syrian Interior Ministry stressed that the perpetrators of this terrorist act, and anyone behind it, will be pursued and brought to justice, and that no one involved will escape accountability.

“The Syrian capital was shaken today, Thursday, by an explosion targeting a cafe in a busy area, which has so far left 9 dead and about 20 wounded, in the largest security incident of its kind in the heart of Damascus for months”

Al-Jazeera Net

Al Jazeera reported that the Damascus governor acknowledged the blast followed a string of recent security breaches, including a May 19 car bombing near the Armament Management centre in Bab Sharqi that killed a soldier and wounded 18.

Al Jazeera also said a bombing on June 22 targeting the Mar Elias church in Dwelaa was claimed by the ISIL (ISIS) armed group, and that the governor insisted the Ministry of Interior had made “a marked improvement” in the security situation since the downfall of the former government.

Claudio Cordoni, the UN deputy special envoy for Syria, condemned the blast and urged that the perpetrators be brought to justice, while the BBC reported that a person near the blast site for the BBC Arabic program 'Middle East Diary' said security forces had imposed a security cordon and prevented people from approaching the blast site.