Damascus Jaramana blast toll corrected: 14 hurt, no deaths in taxi bombing

Damascus,UPDATED: Aug 7, 2026 14:10 IST

Syria's Health Ministry said on Friday that 14 people were wounded, three of them critically, in the explosion of a minivan taxi in a Damascus suburb a day earlier, and that there were no deaths in the blast.

The ministry had said on Thursday night that two people were killed, but later corrected the toll. The blast in Jaramana is the latest in a series of attacks that have added to the security and political challenges facing interim President Ahmad al-Sharaa.

In a statement on Friday, the ministry said the reported fatalities had been incorrectly recorded after three severed limbs were pulled from the wreckage. After further investigation, it said the limbs were found to belong to living patients who were undergoing surgery.

Officials said the explosion in Jaramana was caused by an explosive device planted in the minivan taxi, which was carrying passengers at the time. A little-known group calling itself Minbar Ansar al-Rasoul issued a statement claiming responsibility for the attack. Syrian authorities have not announced any arrests or the results of their investigation.

Jaramana is home to a large population of the Druze religious minority and has seen tensions between some members of the community and Sunni Muslim Syrians who support the country's current Islamist-led government. The tensions flared in April 2025, when at least 10 people were killed in sectarian clashes between Druze gunmen and pro-government fighters.

The bombing was the third in just over a month and is among several challenges for al-Sharaa since he came to power in December 2024 after leading an insurgency that overthrew the Assad dynasty and ended its half-century rule. In early July, two explosions wounded at least 18 people during French President Emmanuel Macron's visit to Syria. Explosive devices had been placed in a dustbin and a parked car, and Syrian authorities later said those arrested were part of an Islamic State cell.

Al-Sharaa has been trying to assert full control over Syria, win over minority groups sceptical of his Islamist-led rule and secure support from Western governments concerned about his past leadership of the formerly al-Qaida-linked Hayat Tahrir al-Sham group. His government has also promised political and economic reform after decades of autocratic rule under the Assad family. The latest blast in Jaramana has again brought into focus the security pressures and community tensions facing the country.

With PTI Inputs

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