Blasts hit Damascus during Macron visit

Blasts hit Damascus during Macron visit

Eighteen people were injured Tuesday when two explosive devices detonated in central Damascus near the hotel where French President Emmanuel Macron had been staying, state media reported.

Security forces had discovered the devices and were attempting to defuse them when they exploded, officials said. One was hidden inside a parked car and the other in a rubbish bin. Macron, in the Syrian capital for talks with President Ahmed al‑Sharaa, was unharmed and did not hear the blasts, his office said.

In southern Lebanon, an Israeli drone strike on a car killed four people, including a school headteacher, according to Lebanese state media. The Israeli military said the vehicle had entered a restricted security zone and was considered a threat. It was the deadliest Israeli attack since last month’s cease‑fire announcement.

Lebanon’s health ministry said at least 4,319 people have been killed in Israeli strikes since the current hostilities began.

Meanwhile, UNICEF warned that conditions in Gaza remain catastrophic after more than 1,000 days of war. Children there “have been killed, maimed, displaced, and deprived of the essentials they need to survive, grow, and recover,” spokesperson Louise Wateridge said, adding that more than 60,000 children have been killed or injured.