Speculation has been running wild today in Damascus after a bombing in a cafe in the center of the city killed at least nine people and wounded some 20 others. The site was near the Justice Palace, the city’s main courthouse.
As of yet, no group has claimed credit for the bombing, but the Interior Ministry has reported that they found what they described as a “primitive” explosive device at the cafe, which was frequented by lawyers who work at the courthouse.
The governor of Damascus, Maher Marwan, said that all of the slain appear to be civilians, and at least four of them were lawyers. A motive is still unclear, but the proximity to the court is believed to be a factor.
Aftermath of a deadly bombing in a Damascus cafe 7/2/2026 | Image from X
The area has been cordoned off by security forces, evacuated nearby government buildings, and the governor promised those responsible would be held to account. They also promised a report shortly on their investigation, but without a claim of credit in such a crowded area, it may be difficult to point to a specific group.
The cafe is on Naser Street, effectively directly in between the court house, the Justice Ministry, and a major train station. As such, the amount of foot traffic is enormous during the afternoon, when the attack took place.
Though bombing attacks aren’t unheard of in Damascus an attack of this size is relatively rare since the end of the Syrian Civil War and the ouster of the Assad government. There are, however, still a large number of disparate factions within Syria and some of them, like ISIS, have historically used such tactics.
