Syria is one of the countries with the highest number of mines on its lands despite the prohibition of their use under international law, the Syrian Network for Human Rights (SNHR) said Monday.
“At least 2,601 civilians, including 267 women and 598 children, have been killed in hundreds of mine explosions in various Syrian governorates between March 2011 and December 2020,” the rights group said in a video published on Twitter.
SNHR said eight medical personnel, six civil defense personnel and nine members of the press were among those killed by mines in the war-torn country.
Most incidents of landmines detonating were documented in northern Aleppo and Raqqa provinces where the combined death toll amounts to about 51% of mine-related deaths, followed by Deir el-Zour with 16%, the SNHR said.
The SNHR explained that the numbers differed according to the province for many reasons, including the changing control over the regions by various actors in the Syrian conflict.
“There are still undiscovered minefields which threaten generations of Syrians for decades to come with children being among the worst affected,” it stressed.
Turkish security forces carry out mine-clearing operations in areas liberated from terrorist organizations in northern Syria. The Defense Ministry said in February that 903 mines and 1,720 improvised explosive devices (IEDs) had been destroyed by security forces in northern Syria, while efforts were ongoing.
Syria's civil war has killed more than 387,000 people and displaced millions from their homes since erupting in 2011 with the brutal repression of anti-government protests.
