In a report marking Mine Awareness Day, the United Nations children’s agency UNICEF warned that explosive remnants of war continue to threaten children’s lives in Syria.
The agency said the decline in hostilities has not ended the danger facing children, who remain exposed every day to these hazards beneath the rubble of their homes and in their fields.
UNICEF’s alarming figures
UNICEF said the toll has been heavy. Since December 2024, at least 1,891 civilians have been injured, including 698 killed and 1,193 wounded, figures that reflect the scale of the ongoing tragedy across Syria.
According to the UNICEF report, children have borne the brunt of the crisis, accounting for 30% of deaths and 40% of injuries through February 2026, with the real numbers likely higher.
UN estimates say around 5 million children now live in areas contaminated by explosives, with about 324,000 items scattered across roads, schools and homes throughout Syria.
UNICEF said the danger is increasing as more than 3 million displaced people return home, often without enough information about the mine contamination in their areas of origin.
In this context, UNICEF representative Merytchell Rellano Arana said that “peace cannot take root on unsafe ground,” stressing that awareness is the way to save lives.
A legacy that could last a generation: what is the solution?
According to the report, the suffering does not end with physical injury. Syria’s health sector is also struggling, with half of its facilities out of service, making it harder to rehabilitate the wounded.
Signs of psychological distress are also appearing in one in every three families, while disability and poverty are depriving more than 2.45 million Syrian children of their right to education.
Family poverty is deepening the crisis, with 9 in 10 Syrians living below the poverty line, leaving economic and physical recovery out of reach for many families.
Nidal Ahmed, a Syrian who lost his foot in a landmine explosion near an olive grove in Aleppo province in December 2024. The photo was taken on March 4, 2025. (AFP)
In its report, UNICEF called on the international community and relevant authorities to urgently and sustainably expand awareness of explosive hazards in schools and displacement sites.
The UN agency also urged faster clearance of remnants from critical infrastructure and homes so that displaced people can return safely and with dignity to their communities.
It concluded by stressing the need to support survivors with medical care, psychological support and economic reintegration, “to ensure a better future that the children of Syria deserve.”
