Damascus café blast death toll rises to 9, 20 injured as Syria launches probe

At least nine people were killed and 20 injured after an improvised explosive device detonated inside a café in central Damascus. Syrian authorities have launched an investigation, while no group has claimed responsibility for the attack.

Damascus: The death toll from an explosion inside a cafe in central Damascus has risen to nine, while the injuries have surged to 20, Syria’s interior authorities said Thursday night in a statement.

The blast, occurred at around 3:00 p.m. local time (1200 GMT), was caused by an improvised explosive device weighing about 1 kg and packed with metal fragments, the authorities said.

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The device was detonated inside the cafe on al-Nasr Street in the Hijjaz area, about 70 meters west of the Justice Palace, Xinhua news agency reported quoting the authorities.

Security forces and emergency teams rushed to the scene shortly after the blast to evacuate the injured, provide first aid, and secure the area, the authorities said, adding that an investigation has been launched to determine the circumstances of the blast and identify those responsible.

Earlier on Thursday, Syria’s state news agency SANA, citing emergency officials, said all the casualties had been transferred to hospitals.

So far, no group has claimed responsibility for the blast.

Despite no group claiming responsibility for Thursday’s blast, security officials say the Islamic State has been attempting to capitalize on the security vacuum following Assad’s ouster by reactivating sleeper cells, recruiting new fighters, and relocating weapons as the new government works to consolidate control across Syria.

Earlier in June, two Syrian soldiers were killed by unknown people in northern Syria’s Aleppo province, state news agency SANA reported.

Citing a defence ministry source, SANA said the two soldiers were targeted near the city of Manbij in the northeastern countryside of Aleppo.

The incident is the latest in a series of attacks and ambushes targeting military personnel in Syria’s new transitional authorities. On May 11, two soldiers were killed when their bus came under attack in the countryside of northeastern Syria’s Hasakah province.

Some media reports suggested an Islamic State involvement in the recent series of attacks against members of the new Syrian military forces that were formed in the wake of the downfall of the previous Syrian administration in late 2024.