Damascus: Security has been tightened after an explosive device went off near the Four Seasons Hotel in Damascus on Tuesday, where French president Emmanuel Macron had spent the night ahead of a meeting with his Syrian counterpart.
The French president was unharmed and was already at the presidential palace when the explosions occurred, the Élysée Palace said in a statement. France’s BFMTV, CNN affiliate, said he had been staying at the Four Seasons hotel.
According to state-run Syrian Arab News Agency (SANA), two separate blasts were reported in Damascus, They occurred while security officers were trying to dismantle two explosive devices found during field operations, the agency added. At least 18 people were injured, including four police officers, SANA said.
One of the explosions took place next to the Four Seasons in the heart of the capital and another blast went off beside the nearby Ministry of Tourism, a Syrian official told CNN on condition of anonymity. The hotel is regularly used by overseas visitors to Syria, including diplomats, NGO workers and journalists.
It has been reported that the site of the explosion was “outside the security perimeter” designated for Macron’s residence, as per Syria’s Ministry of Interior.
According to SANA, both explosive devices were made “in a primitive way”. The first device was placed inside a vehicle parked on the side of the road, while the second was planted inside a garbage container, the news agency said.
An investigation has been launched to determine the circumstances of the attack and identify those involved, SANA added.
Macron reached Syria on Monday evening local time to meet the country’s President Ahmed al-Sharaa, marking the first official visit by a Western leader to the country since the fall of the Assad regime in December, 2024.
Macron is the third head of state to visit Syria in that time, after the emir of Qatar, Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy visited in January, 2025 and April of this year, respectively.
The twin explosions early Tuesday took place less than a week after nine people were killed and 22 others injured in a separate attack in the Syrian capital, according to Syria’s Ministry of Health.
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