Damascus

Despite Damascus’s pledge, the members noted that families still struggle to find relatives held in custody and many detainees face long periods of detention without judicial review.

"We want to continue working on the restructuring of the banking sector," Macron said at a news conference alongside Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa.

The explosions are believed to have been caused by an explosive device planted on a vehicle near the French president's hotel, while Macron confirmed in a statement that his visit will continue.

Syria’s President Ahmed al-Sharaa is also expected to travel to Turkey to hold meetings on the sidelines of the NATO summit in the following days.

The visit underlines Syria's geopolitical transformation under Sharaa, a former al-Qaeda commander who has established close ties with Western and Middle Eastern powers that shunned Assad.

As Syria’s first post-Assad parliament takes shape, activists say a rise in female lawmakers will matter only if women can shape legislation and oversight.

The attacks in July, 2025, were among the worst outbreaks of sectarian violence since Ahmed al-Sharaa seized power following the fall of the Assad regime in 2024.

"The Syrian Arab Republic condemns in the strongest terms the heinous terrorist bombing that targeted a café in the capital, Damascus," said the Syrian Foreign Ministry in a statement.

The Syrian minister, Asaad al-Shibani, met Lebanese President Joseph Aoun on his first stop, and then headed for a meeting with the parliament speaker, Nabih Berri, an ally of Hezbollah.

Syrian authorities have maintained that the woman voluntarily left her family home and converted of her own free will. Her family, however, contends that she was abducted and is being held by force.