​Hazards in the fields: 14-year-old war still haunts Syrians as landmines claim more lives​

The Syrian war began in 2011 as a protest against President Assad and escalated into a complex, multi-sided conflict. It killed over 500,000 people, displaced millions, and devastated the country. Although Assad’s regime fell in 2024, landmines and war remnants continue to endanger civilians and hinder recovery efforts.

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Land mines were seen scattered across a field as the defence ministry conducted an operation to detect and destroy explosives left by the Syrian army during the war, on agricultural land south of Idlib, Syria.

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The Syrian defense ministry is actively clearing landmines and unexploded ordnance left by the former regime, focusing on farmland in liberated areas. Despite limited resources and high risks, demining teams work daily to make the land safe for returning civilians and farmers.

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Salah Swed, 28, displayed a photo of his late brother Mohammed, who was killed while trying to defuse a landmine, on his cellphone as he stands by his grave in their hometown of Kafr Nabl, south of Idlib, Syria.

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Jalal Ma'rouf, a 22-year-old shepherd lost a leg to a landmine while herding cattle on farmland recently retaken from regime forces. Experts estimate that tens of thousands of land mines remain buried across Syria, particularly in former front-line regions like rural Idlib.

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Suleiman Khalil, 21, who lost his leg to a landmine while he picked olives with friends in a field, walked outside his home in Qaminas village, east of Idlib, Syria. Landmines and explosive remnants of war result not only in direct loss of life or severe injuries that can cause a permanent disability or life-long scarring

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Jalal Ma'rouf, a 22-year-old shepherd, revealed the stump of the leg he lost to a landmine while herding sheep on farmland recently reclaimed from regime forces, at his home in Deir Sunbul village, south of Idlib.

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Suleiman Khalil, 21, who lost his leg in a landmine blast while harvesting olives with friends, spoke with his father at their home in the village of Qaminas, east of Idlib, Syria. Human Rights Watch emphasizes the urgent need for a civilian-led mine action authority, coordinated with the UN Mine Action Service (UNMAS), to expedite demining efforts and ensure civilian safety.

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Suleiman Khalil, 21, who lost his leg in a landmine blast while picking olives with friends, is seen reflected in a mirror at his home in Qaminas village, east of Idlib, Syria. The Syrian defense ministry's demining operations face significant challenges due to limited resources, inadequate equipment, and the vast number of remaining explosives.​

(Photo:AP)