UN warns of deadly threat from explosive ordnance contamination in Syria

United Nations: UN humanitarians have warned of the deadly threat posed by explosive ordnance contamination in Syria.

The UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) on Friday (local time) said the contamination continues to affect not only where people live, but also how they move, work and provide for their families.

“Over the past week, a dozen explosive ordnance incidents were recorded across six Syrian governorates, killing nine people — six of them children — and injuring 13 others,” OCHA said.

The office said a landmine hit a civilian vehicle in Deir ez-Zor governorate on Monday, killing five children and injuring three other civilians. Raqqa governorate recorded the highest number of ordnance explosions, underscoring the continued dangers of explosive remnants of war in northern Syria.

In another incident, two people were killed, and five others injured on Tuesday in an explosion involving a vehicle loaded with ammunition in the city of Binnish in Syria’s northwestern Idlib province, state news agency SANA reported, citing the provincial emergency and disaster management directorate.

The blast triggered a series of explosions in the city, according to SANA.

OCHA said that since December 8, 2024, more than 1,400 explosive ordnance incidents have been documented across Syria, causing nearly 2,500 civilian casualties, including 880 deaths.

More than two-thirds of the incidents occurred on agricultural and grazing land, underscoring the urgent need for large-scale clearance operations to reduce the risks for farmers, herders and people travelling between villages, said OCHA.

Partners working on mine action stress that education on the risk of explosive ordnance, clearance operations and assistance for those affected are essential to protect civilians and allow them to return home safely, said the office.

IANS