DAMASCUS, May 19 (Xinhua) -- A powerful explosion struck the al-Dweilaa neighborhood in eastern Damascus on Tuesday, with initial reports indicating injuries, according to local sources.

Smoke billows from the site of an explosion in northern Idlib, Syria, July 24, 2025. (File photo: Xinhua)

The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said a strong blast was heard near the entrance of the Armament Administration headquarters, accompanied by gunfire, with preliminary reports of casualties.

State-run al-Ikhbariya TV said an explosion of unknown origin struck the al-Dweilaa neighborhood and that authorities are working to determine its nature.

Eyewitnesses told Xinhua that the explosion, heard across several districts of Damascus, originated near an old military headquarters in the east of the capital, with gunfire heard afterward.