Minibus bombing toll revised to 14 injured, no deaths

Syria’s Health Ministry said on Friday that 14 people were injured in a bomb explosion the previous day on a minibus near Damascus, revising an earlier toll that reported two deaths.

According to Toufiq Hassaba, a health ministry official, human remains transferred to a hospital after the blast had been mistakenly identified as belonging to people killed, rather than injured. He told state television that the “final toll is 14 wounded,” including three people in critical condition.

The previous toll announced by the Health Ministry on Thursday had reported two deaths and 13 injuries. The interior ministry confirmed the updated figures, saying specialized units had secured the site, collected evidence and launched an investigation to determine the circumstances of the “crime,” identify those responsible and bring them to justice.

“Targeting civilians and attempting to undermine security and stability will not deter Syrians from continuing on the path of recovery and state-building,” Foreign Minister Assaad al-Shaibani said in a post on X overnight.

The attack took place in Jaramana, a predominantly Druze and Christian city in Damascus’ southeastern outskirts that was hit by sectarian violence in spring 2025. A security source cited by state television said the explosion was caused by “a bomb planted” inside a public transport minibus.

Since overthrowing President Bashar al-Assad in late 2024, Ahmad al-Sharaa, a former jihadist, has been seeking to consolidate his authority across Syria, a country left fragmented by more than 13 years of devastating war.

Druze Sheikh Akl Sami Abi el-Mona condemned what he called a “criminal aggression.”

“The attack on Jaramana is an attack against all of Syria, as its perpetrators seek to undermine the model of diversity and coexistence and further deepen divisions between the components of Syrian society,” he wrote, according to a statement published by the state-run National News Agency.

Sheikh Mona called for unity and solidarity following the attack on Jaramana, urging the Syrian state to identify those responsible, bring them to justice, and ensure the security and rights of residents.