Five killed, 11 injured in blast at Damascus cafe near Palace of Justice

At least five people were killed and 11 others injured after an explosion ripped through a cafe in central Damascus on Thursday, Syrian health authorities said, as officials confirmed the blast was caused by an explosive device.

The Syrian health ministry announced the casualty toll, with Ahmed al-Bakour, head of the ministry's emergency services, saying five people lost their lives while 11 sustained injuries. His remarks were carried by the state-run Syrian Arab News Agency (SANA).

Syrian state television later reported that the explosion resulted from an explosive device planted inside the cafe, located near the Palace of Justice in the heart of the capital.

Earlier, authorities had said they were working to determine the cause of the blast before confirming that the incident was the result of a planted explosive.

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A video circulating on social media showed several injured people laying on the floor, with police officers nearby.

Nour Khayyat, 40, who owns a shop selling batteries for solar panels near the site of the explosion, told AFP that "at about 3:00 pm (1200 GMT), I heard a powerful blast and the storefront shook".

"People rushed to the cafe and called ambulances," he added.

Mohammed al-Zahabi, the owner of a glasses shop next to the targeted cafe, was trembling as he told AFP that "after the blast, I felt strong pressure, and the whole place shook".

"I ran to the place and saw people lying on the floor with blood pooled around them everywhere," he added, saying the scenes recalled the blasts that Damascus experienced during the nearly 14-year civil war.

Damascus has been the site of multiple attacks and incidents since the new authorities took over following the toppling of longtime ruler Bashar al-Assad in December 2024.

The deadliest came in June 2025, when an attack on a Damascus church killed 25 people.

The suicide attack was later claimed by a Sunni Islamist group, while the authorities blamed it on the Islamic State group.

With inputs from agencies