Two explosions went off near a major hotel in Damascus on Tuesday, injuring at least 18 people. French President Emmanuel Macron was visiting the city at the time The Guardian. He had stayed at the Four Seasons hotel the night before and was meeting with Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa when the blasts happened Al Jazeera. The Four Seasons is one of the best-protected buildings in Damascus—it houses diplomats and United Nations workers BBC.

Video from the scene showed Syrian police near a trash bin moments before it exploded. Four officers were hurt in that blast. A second device was found in a parked car nearby. Nobody has claimed responsibility for either attack The Guardian.

Macron did not cancel his meetings. After the explosions, photos showed him and al-Sharaa embracing at the presidential palace. Macron wrote on X that "nothing can smother the aspiration of Syrian women and men to live in a fully sovereign, safe, pluralistic and united Syria." The night before the bombings, a French-Syrian business event had taken place at the same hotel, showing how important the visit was to Damascus's leadership SANA.

This was not the first bombing in Damascus recently. The week before, an explosion at a café near the Justice Palace killed at least 10 people and injured more than 20. Nobody claimed responsibility for that attack either. Until now, Damascus had been relatively quiet compared to other parts of Syria, where violence and assassinations have been common since Bashar al-Assad fell from power in December 2024.

The timing of these two attacks raises concerns. When bombs go off in a heavily guarded city during a foreign leader's visit, and nobody takes credit, it is hard to know what is really happening. Either Damascus is becoming more dangerous, or someone wanted to embarrass the government by striking during an important diplomatic moment. For people thinking about investing in Syria or supporting its new government, these questions matter a lot.

Macron's visit was significant for another reason. France is reopening its embassy in Damascus for the first time since 2012, when it cut ties with Assad over his government's treatment of protesters. This visit and the new agreement restore diplomatic relations after fourteen years. That matters because Syria's current government includes people from HTS, a group that started as a branch of al-Qaida. Despite that history, France has become one of the strongest Western supporters of Syria's new leadership, pushing the United States to lift economic penalties against the country.

Macron brought business leaders with him. French companies signed deals to fix Syria's water and electricity systems, help run the airport, and assist the central bank. One agreement involves returning stolen money—about £43.6 million—that a relative of Bashar al-Assad took to France.

This situation reveals a difficult problem for Syria's new government. It desperately needs foreign money and investment to rebuild after years of civil war and international penalties. But investors and foreign governments want proof that the country is actually safe. When bombs go off without anyone claiming responsibility, it is hard to provide that proof. Syria's new leaders inherited security forces from different groups that fought al-Assad. Those forces need to show they can protect the capital and the rest of the country. If the bombings continue, Western governments and companies will become more cautious about whether to invest in Syria.