Landmines continue to claim lives in post-Assad Syria: Details here
What's the story
Syria, still reeling from the effects of its civil war, which ended in December 2024, is facing an unseen danger: landmines and unexploded ordnance.
The International NGO Safety Organisation (INSO) says these have killed at least 249 people and injured 379 others since the war officially ended. The toll includes 60 children.
Farmers and returning residents are especially susceptible to the danger, particularly in former battlegrounds like Idlib.
War remnants
Landmines: A deadly legacy of the Syrian civil war
All sides extensively used landmines and explosive remnants during the 13-year-long Syrian civil war. Such devices now contaminate vast areas, especially in rural Idlib, which were front-line zones.
As people return to these areas after the fall of the Assad regime, landmine presence has increased drastically.
According to Richard Weir of Human Rights Watch (HRW), without immediate nationwide demining efforts, more returning civilians will be injured or killed.
Obstacles
Deminers face challenges in clearing landmines
According to Ahmad Jomaa, a demining team member with Syria's defense ministry, tens of thousands of mines are still buried, and the actual scale of contamination is still unknown.
"We don't even have an exact number. It will take ages to clear them all," he said.
Daily risks await farmers who rely on agriculture for their main income.
Recently, a tractor hit a mine, seriously injuring workers.
Personal impact
Human toll of landmines: Stories from Idlib
The psychological cost of these explosives is deep.
Jalal al-Maarouf, a 22-year-old shepherd from rural Idlib, lost his leg three days after the fall of the Assad government and is now waiting for a prosthetic limb.
"As you can see, I can't walk."
The price of a limb is more than $3,000, which is beyond the reach of most survivors.
These mines were planted over the years by Syrian forces and opposition, but weren't cleared properly by the Assad government after it regained control.
Clearing efforts
Volunteer teams and former fighters risk lives to clear mines
Volunteer teams and former fighters like 39-year-old Mohammad Sweid are now risking their lives to clear mines.
His brother, Salah, said: "Every day someone is dying."
HRW has urged Syria's transitional government to create a civilian-led mine action authority in collaboration with the UN Mine Action Service (UNMAS) to improve demining efforts.