Explosions in Damascus during Macron visit: What we know 

Explosions have been heard in the Syrian capital, Damascus, in what security experts believe may have been an attack targeting French President Emmanuel Macron and his delegation as he makes a landmark visit to the city.

Macron is the first European leader to visit Syria since the 2024 ouster of Bashar al-Assad by rebel forces led by Syria’s new president, Ahmed al-Sharaa.

Here’s what we know so far:

What has happened in Damascus?

Reporting from Damascus, Al Jazeera’s Obaida Hitto said two explosions occurred in a busy area of central Damascus near the Ministry of Tourism and the Four Seasons Hotel, where Macron had stayed the night before.

Syria’s Ministry of the Interior said 18 people were injured, including four police officers, the state news agency, SANA, reported.

Later on Tuesday, the ministry said the explosives had detonated after Syrian security forces discovered them and dispatched specialists to try to dismantle them. It said authorities were surveilling the area and investigating the circumstances surrounding the attack, with the aim of discovering those responsible.

The Reuters and AFP news agencies reported that the first blast went off in a rubbish bin shortly after Macron’s motorcade had left the hotel for the presidential palace. Reuters footage showed flames and smoke billowing from the bin just as a second explosion was caught on camera a few metres (a few yards) away.

The second blast occurred close to an ambulance parked near the Four Seasons while about two dozen people were in the vicinity.

More television footage showed plumes of smoke rising in the sky over the city while online footage verified by Al Jazeera showed a vehicle on fire.

Security experts told Al Jazeera explosive devices may have been placed and timed for when Macron’s entourage was en route to the presidential palace for meetings.

However, Syria’s Ministry of Interior said the explosions took place outside Macron’s designated security perimeter and did not pose a direct threat to his residence or itinerary.

The French president’s office said Macron, who did not hear the explosions, had arrived safely for a meeting with al-Sharaa along with their respective delegations. Al-Sharaa is expected to travel to the ongoing NATO summit to meet with US President Donald Trump. It is unclear if that trip is still going ahead following the attacks in Damascus.

Reporting from the palace, Hitto said the situation there was “calm” despite the shock caused by the explosions.

Details are limited for now. No group has claimed responsibility for the explosions.

Analysts said it is likely that the French delegation was the target.

Kamal Abdeo, professor and political researcher at the University of Idlib in Syria, said the attack appeared to have targeted Macron with those responsible having planted improvised explosive devices overnight on roads his convoy would use.

“They probably implanted it at night after Macron arrived,” Abdeo said, calling the incident a “big security breach” that the Syrian state needs to address.

Syrian security expert Ismat al-Absi said the aim was likely to “create unrest and send a negative message”.

“But let’s be clear, there is a security gap, and we need to fix it … to prevent portraying Syria’s security situation in a negative light,” he added.

Tuesday’s explosions come after an explosive device was detonated in a cafe near the Palace of Justice in Damascus on Thursday, killing at least 10 people and wounding 20.

Why is Macron in Damascus?

The French president’s trip to Damascus is the first by a European head of state since longtime Syrian leader al-Assad was ousted in a blitz offensive in late 2024 that brought al-Sharaa to power after nearly 14 years of civil war.

Syria’s reconstruction is expected to feature prominently in the meetings for Macron, who made the trip to Damascus with numerous French business leaders, according to a French presidential official.

In a post on X after the explosions, Macron said: “Nothing can suppress the aspirations of the Syrian people to live in a fully sovereign, secure, pluralistic and united Syria.”

He added that he had held meetings in the morning with diverse Syrians who displayed “dignity, courage and determination”.

“My visit continues,” said Macron.

The trip is seen as a forum for Syria to showcase its new political order under al-Sharaa, a former al-Qaeda commander who, since becoming president, has developed⁠ ties with Western and Middle Eastern powers that shunned al-Assad.