The Syrian Network for Human Rights has documented at least 3,799 civilians killed by landmines and cluster munition remnants between March 2011 and April 2026, including 1,000 children and 377 women, with a further 10,600 injured.
Casualties rose after the fall of the former government as displaced people returned and farming resumed, with incidents recorded while ploughing, foraging for truffles, or when children handled war remnants.
Services and aid in the camps have fallen sharply since Assad’s fall.
Mohammad Bakir, director of the northern department of social affairs and labour in Idlib, told The New Arab that 60 percent of camps have no basic services at all. In some, provision is limited to one bundle of bread per family, and only a few receive full water, sanitation and hygiene services.
As donors pull back, the government is seeking to move international and regional support from the camps to areas of return.
It has presented the UN with a plan to shift funding from humanitarian response to recovery and durable solutions: clearing mines and rubble, rehabilitating infrastructure and services, and creating jobs where people return.
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"If the move comes before housing and services are ready, it could saddle families with rent and debt, interrupt treatment or schooling, and lead to new displacement," he added.
"Voluntariness must be real: a family’s consent is not enough without clear information and viable alternatives."
