Syria

About

The extensive use of explosive weapons inside Syria during nearly 15 years of continuous conflict poses a grave threat to Syrians, humanitarian operations, and livelihood activities. The presence of explosive hazards has continued to threaten the lives and livelihoods of affected communities and endangers humanitarian actors seeking to provide aid.

UN Security Council Resolution 2165 recognized mine action as a humanitarian priority for the international response to the Syrian crisis. Upon request from the UN Regional Humanitarian Coordinator, UNMAS activated the UNMAS Syria program with an office in Gaziantep, Turkey in August 2015. As the sub sector lead in the Whole of Syria coordination mechanism, UNMAS Syria program established the Mine Action Sub Cluster (MASC) and fully integrated mine action into the wider humanitarian response.

As part of its global Syria Response to the threat of explosive hazards, UNMAS signed a Memorandum of Understanding with the Syrian Arab Republic in July 2018 to establish a presence in the country and deliver humanitarian mine action activities, as prioritized in the Humanitarian Response Plan. Years of conflict in Syria have left a long-term devastating risk of explosive ordnance (EO) contamination. This contamination is widespread and will affect multiple generations of Syrians, impacting economic development and hampering reconstruction efforts and agricultural regeneration. According to the 2025 Humanitarian Needs Overview (HNO) over 15.4 million Syrians—more than 65% of the population—are at immediate risk of injury or death due to explosive ordnance (EO).

Recent developments in Syria-December 2024—including the fall of the previous regime, abandoned military ammunition, and ongoing Israeli airstrikes—have worsened EO contamination. This poses severe risks, especially as internally displaced persons (IDPs) and refugees return across former front lines. From 8 December 2024 to the end of December 2025, the International NGO Safety Organisation (INSO) recorded more than 920 EO-related incidents, resulting in 607 casualties (including 177 children) and 1070 injuries (including 440 children). Of these incidents, 567 occurred in agricultural or grazing areas, causing the deaths of 364 people and injuries to 595 others. The three governorates most affected—Deir ez-Zor, Aleppo, and Idlib—account for the highest number of incidents and casualties.

EO contamination continues to pose a severe threat to civilians in Syria. The number of incidents in both urban and rural areas reflects the compounding effects of the deteriorating economic situation and the growing reliance on alternative livelihoods including scrap metal collection that places people at direct risk from EO hazards.

EO contamination not only endangers civilians but also hampers humanitarian access and stalls reconstruction and recovery efforts. EO contamination is recognised by the UN as a high strategic risk affecting more than half of Syria’s sub-districts and severely limiting the ability to reach those in need and hampering reconstruction efforts.

Throughout 2025, the UNMAS Syria Program continued to lead the Humanitarian Mine Action (HMA) Area of Responsibility (AoR) by coordinating actors across the country and strengthening the capacity of the National Mine Action Centre (NMAC). Central to these efforts was the management of the Information Management System for Mine Action (IMSMA), which aggregates critical data to map partner responses and integrate mine action into broader humanitarian and early recovery frameworks.

In line with its vision to enable risk-free humanitarian delivery, UNMAS and its partners conducted extensive survey and clearance operations across multiple governorates. Following Non-technical Survey (NTS) work that identified numerous Hazardous Areas (HA), Explosive Ordnance Disposal (EOD) teams were deployed to Aleppo, Daraa, Hama, Homs, Idleb, Rural Damascus, and As-Sweida governorates. These teams addressed EO spot tasks and conducted both surface and sub-surface Battle Area Clearance (BAC) activities, successfully removing and destroying a significant number of EO items to secure priority communities.

Complementing these clearance efforts, UNMAS implemented a robust Explosive Ordnance Risk Education (EORE) program to increase safety awareness among both humanitarian workers and local populations. This included specialized training for EORE facilitators and focal points, alongside the distribution of printed awareness materials such as posters and leaflets to mainstream risk awareness into activities. Direct outreach remained a priority, with the EORE teams and its partners delivering sessions to returnees, Internally Displaced People (IDP), and farmers across 11 of Syria’s 14 governorates, ensuring that those most at risk are equipped with life-saving knowledge.

UNMAS Syria program supports the development of a sustainable, well-coordinated national mine action sector and reduces the threat of EO to civilians through four pillars of work:

1. Coordination, Information and Quality Management

UNMAS, as the lead agency for the HMA AoR, integrates mine action within humanitarian coordination and ensures the EO threat is considered in UN strategic planning. It manages Syria’s Information Management System for Mine Action (IMSMA), providing data-driven analysis for prioritization and decision-making. On behalf of the Syria Mine Action Centre (NMAC), UNMAS oversees accreditation and quality assurance for HMA actors. Coordination has been strengthened through expanded Technical Working Groups (TWG) covering Victim Assistance, Risk Education, Survey and Clearance, Information Management and Advocacy.

2. Explosive Ordnance Risk Education (EORE) Risk education is a vital part of humanitarian and reconstruction efforts, helping communities and responders reduce EO-related risks. The HMA Sector delivers life-saving information through direct sessions, trains facilitators and develops tailored risk education materials to address age, gender, profession, social responsibility, and localized threats.

3. Survey, Marking and Clearance

UNMAS advocacy efforts have prioritized EO survey, marking, and clearance within the Syria Humanitarian Response Plan to identify and eliminate threats. NTS collects initial contamination data, followed by appropriate clearance activities to remove the threat posed by EO. Clearance operations are essential for complete EO removal, safely returning land for community use.

UNMAS's activities, including technical advice and survey/clearance operations, are vital for urban reconstruction and agricultural recovery. This work restores safe land access, enabling partners to rebuild livelihoods and public services.

4. Victim Assistance (VA)

To ensure sustainability of VA interventions and that no one is left behind, UNMAS connects between the relevant national institutions and humanitarian actors to map VA services for persons with disabilities, establishing specialised referral pathways, and promoting VA and disability concepts and standards. In 2020, UNMAS developed a VA framework as a foundation to initiate VA in Syria; including: 1) collection and analysis of data on EO incidents and victims, 2) analysis and release of reports and factsheets, 3) establishment of a referral system in coordination with the health, protection and other sectors, and 4) establishment of the Victim Assistance Working Group.

UNMAS thanks the following donors for their generous support through the United Nations Voluntary Trust Fund for assisting Mine Action in Syria during 2025:

The Governments of Belgium, Canada, Estonia, Finland, Italy, Republic of Korea, Central Emergency Response Fund (CERF), Country Based Pooled Funds-OCHA-SHF, and UN HABITAT.

The Mine Action Sector in Syria is critically underfunded. Urgent funding is needed to scale up response efforts and support. To respond to the increasing mine action needs, the Humanitarian Needs and Response Plan shows a funding need of $67.2 million for Mine Action in 2025 to help 15.4 million target beneficiaries in need and ensure continued delivery of mine action in Syria.