At around 10:57 am local time, two explosive devices went off near the Four Seasons Hotel in Damascus, where French President Emmanuel Macron was staying during his state visit. The hotel is located near the Ministry of Tourism and the Damascus National Museum on a busy street in the capital, though the blasts took place on a peripheral road not far from the hotel. According to Syrian officials, one of the devices was placed in a garbage bin and the other in a parked car. At least eighteen people were wounded in the blasts, including four police officers. A van and a motorcycle caught fire, but otherwise the damage was relatively low. It remains unclear whether the devices were specifically targeting Macron's convoy as he made his way to the presidential palace to meet Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa, though the apparent aim was to create unrest by undermining the visit and casting doubt on Syria's security situation at a sensitive moment for the country's transitional government. Roads were sealed off and security measures were put in place following the explosions. No group has immediately claimed responsibility for the attack, which was likely carried out by an Islamic State (IS) cell.

An IED explosion at a crowded café near the Palace of Justice in central Damascus killed at least five people and injured 16 others. Though no group has immediately claimed responsibility for the attack, security officials blamed Islamic State sleeper cells for the bombing. Damascus has experienced only a small number of attacks since the fall of the Assad government in December 2024, when President Bashar al-Assad fled to Moscow after rebel forces led by President Ahmed al-Sharaa captured the capital, bringing an end to more than 14 years of civil war and the Assad family's 54-year rule. On 19 May 2026, a car bomb outside the Ministry of Defense in Damascus killed one Syrian soldier and injured at least 18 other people.

Lahore police rescued two foreign women within hours of receiving a kidnapping report from the father of one of the victims. In a rapid operation supported by the city's Safe City surveillance network, Lahore police arrested four suspects, including Muhammad Raza Dar, the grandson of Pakistan's Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister, Ishaq Dar. According to police, the victims, citizens of the Netherlands and Venezuela, were lured to Pakistan through a cryptocurrency investment scheme that began in Singapore in October 2025. Police say the women invested about US$60,000, which later grew to approximately US$500,000 before Raza Dar allegedly invited them to Lahore under the guise of a business trip and arranged their visas. The case emerged after the Dutch woman's father contacted Pakistan's emergency helpline from the Netherlands, reporting that his daughter had been kidnapped. Police said the rescue operation was launched on the directives of Punjab Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz Sharif. Officers tracked down the suspects and rescued both women within two hours. A First Information Report (FIR) filed at Defense C Police Station alleges that the suspects demanded US$1.5 million in ransom for the women's release. The accused are also facing allegations of rape, sexual assault, and extortion. A Lahore court has granted the four arrested suspects five days of police custody. A fifth suspect, identified only as "Boss" in the First Information Report (FIR), remains at large, with Pakistani media reporting that his identity could have major political implications. (92newshd.tv, 2 July 2026 & wionews.com, 5 July 2026)

Three improvised incendiary devices, made from gas canisters, exploded within about seventeen minutes just before dawn at the residences of officials of the governing New Democracy party in the Toumba, Pylaia and Harilaou districts of Thessaloniki. The most severe blast occurred at the intersection of Kimonos Voga and Gravias Street, setting two cars and two motorcycles ablaze, with one of the damaged vehicles belonging to New Democracy candidate Afroditi Nestora. Five people were taken to Thessaloniki's Ippokrateio Hospital, including Nestora and her mother, both being treated for burns, while her father and another resident suffered smoke inhalation. Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis called the assault a cowardly, terrorist attack and traveled to Thessaloniki to support his party colleagues. Police said that attackers on a motorcycle had planted the devices, made from small butane canisters, and that they were gathering video footage to identify the perpetrators. An hour later, the 72-year-old mother of candidate Afroditi Nestora died of multi-organ failure after suffering burns covering 80 percent of her body. Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis visited Thessaloniki to meet the injured officials and receive a briefing, stating there would be zero tolerance for any new form of terrorism and that such times had been left behind. Opposition parties also condemned the attacks. Greece experienced decades of political violence, mainly from armed far-left groups, and far-right attacks linked to the Nazi-inspired Golden Dawn also emerged during the 2009 to 2018 financial crisis.

At 18:04 local time, a powerful magnitude 7.2 earthquake struck northern Venezuela near San Felipe, approximately 160Km/ 100 miles west of Caracas, at a depth of about 13Km/ 8miles, followed just 39 seconds later by a stronger magnitude 7.5 earthquake near Yumare at a depth of approximately 10Km/ 6 miles, in what seismologists described as a rare "doublet" event.  The quakes caused widespread destruction across Caracas, La Guaira, Miranda, Aragua, Carabobo, and Falcón states, collapsing residential and commercial buildings, damaging roads, transport networks, and public infrastructure, and forcing thousands of residents into the streets as aftershocks continued through the night. Simón Bolívar International Airport sustained severe damage and was closed, while metro and rail services were suspended, and power, water, and communications were disrupted in several areas. At least 920 people were confirmed dead and around 3360 injured, although authorities feared the toll could be much higher as rescue teams searched collapsed structures for survivors. The United States Geological Survey issued its highest-level alert, warning of widespread destruction and a substantial probability that fatalities could ultimately reach into the thousands. A state of emergency was declared, international rescue and medical teams began arriving, and authorities urged residents to remain in open areas because of the risk of further aftershocks. A website set up to take reports of missing people had over 50,000 names listed as of June 26.