Damascus says IS behind Damascus blasts, finds explosives cache

Syrian authorities said Friday they uncovered an explosives cache after capturing an Islamic State-linked cell responsible for two bomb blasts during French President Emmanuel Macron's visit to Damascus earlier this week.

The attacks, which occurred near the hotel where Macron spent the night, cast a shadow over the first visit by a European Union head of state since Bashar al-Assad was toppled in late 2024, as President Ahmad al-Sharaa seeks to rebuild the country's image after more than a decade of war.

Interior Minister Anas Khattab said "the cell responsible for the terrorist bombings that targeted Damascus two days ago is now in our custody."

Ahmad Dalati, head of interior security for the Damascus region, told Syrian state television that preliminary investigations indicated "the cell was affiliated with the Islamic State [IS] group."

The Interior Ministry said Friday that "intensive investigations with members of the terrorist cell" allowed authorities to locate "a secret cache the cell had designated for storing explosives in preparation for a series of terrorist attacks."

The Ministry said Thursday night that the cell had been captured following simultaneous raids targeting the suspects' locations across Damascus and its countryside.

The statement said the raids took place in four neighborhoods. The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said dozens of people were arrested in the working-class suburb of Ish al-Warwar.

A predominantly Alawite neighborhood before the 2024 fall of longtime ruler Bashar al-Assad, who belongs to the minority religious community, the area was targeted by raids and arrests after Islamist authorities took power, prompting many residents to leave.

A resident of Ish al-Warwar, who requested anonymity, told AFP the arrests Thursday did not, to their knowledge, target Alawites.

Two blasts struck central Damascus on Tuesday, killing one person and wounding dozens during the French president's first visit to Syria.

The explosives had been planted near the Four Seasons Hotel. Syria's Interior Ministry said one was placed in a garbage container and the other in a vehicle near the hotel in the heart of the capital.

'Courage'

The blasts occurred after Macron had left the hotel and moments before Syrian state media announced his arrival at the presidential palace for talks with Sharaa.

At a joint news conference after the blasts, Macron said "we must not let ourselves be destabilised" by such attacks and reiterated France's support for Syria.

Sharaa praised Macron's "courage" for pressing ahead with the visit despite the bombings.

Macron became the first European Union head of state to visit Syria since Assad's fall in 2024.

Syria joined the U.S.-led coalition against the Islamic State group last year. Although the group was largely defeated in Iraq and Syria by 2019, it continues to operate dormant cells in the country and considers the new authorities in Damascus to be apostates.

The explosions were the second in the Syrian capital this month, following a bombing at a Damascus café on July 2 that killed 10 people.

The French president postponed announcing the date of his visit until his plane landed Monday for security reasons.