Men open fire in Damascus nightclub, second attack in a week targeting nightlife

The Syrian Flag is raised at United Nations Headquarters on Friday, April 25, 2025. (AP Photo/Kena Betancur)

Armed men opened fire inside a club in Damascus on Monday, killing a woman, according to a witness and a war monitor, the second attack in a week targeting the Syrian capital’s nightlife.

The perpetrators or their motives were unknown. Some Syrians have expressed fears that the country’s new Islamist authorities would seek to impose restrictions on public behaviour but it was unclear whether the attackers were linked to them.

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a Britain-based war monitor, reported that “unidentified gunmen attacked the Al-Karawan nightclub in the Hijaz area with automatic weapons and opened fire, killing a woman and wounding others.”

A witness, requesting anonymity for security reasons, said he “heard gunfire at dawn” as he was near the nightclub.

He told AFP that he “did not dare to enter the club until some time after the firing stopped”.

Inside the club, “I saw a woman’s body, blood stains on the ground, and chaos after the shooting,” he said.

Contacted by AFP, the interior ministry did not immediately respond to a request for comment about the deadly attack.

The club is located in a commercial area in the heart of Damascus, where many licensed nightclubs and bars have been operating for decades.

A resident of the same street said security forces had been monitoring the venue from a vehicle for days.

A local vendor said “there has never been any problem with the nightclub” in the five years he has worked in the area.

Hours before the shooting, a video circulated on social media showing security camera footage from a previous attack on a nightclub in the same area.

The footage, verified by AFP, shows gunmen entering the venue before beating fleeing men and women with their weapons.

Authorities said on Sunday that the gunmen involved in the first incident had been arrested.

“After initial investigations and reviewing the recordings, the individuals involved in the assault were identified, arrested and transferred to the judiciary,” the interior ministry said in a statement carried by Alekhbariah television.

“Any transgression or assault affecting citizens or public facilities will be met with strict legal measures,” it added.

Since the fall of longtime ruler Bashar al-Assad in December, the intentional community has been pressing Syria’s new rulers to respect personal freedoms, protect minorities and include all components of society in the transitional period.