Idlib, Syria
BBCAygd never thought that his dream of returning to his farm might turn into a nightmare.
He holds back his tears as he shows us a picture of his late father, smiling, surrounded by abundant olive trees on their land in Idlib Governorate, northwestern Syria.
The photo was taken five years ago, a few months before forces linked to the previous government took control of their village near the city of Saraqib.
The city was a strategic stronghold for Syrian opposition factions for years, before forces allied with the ousted regime of Bashar al-Assad launched an attack on the rebels in Idlib Governorate at the end of 2019.
Hundreds of thousands of residents have fled their homes, with Assad's forces taking control of several other rebel strongholds in the northwest by early 2020.
Aygd and his father were among the displaced.
“We had to leave because of the fighting and airstrikes,” Ayged says with tears in his eyes. “My father refused to leave. He wanted to die on his land.”
Father and son have longed to return ever since. When opposition forces regained control of their village in November 2024, their dream was about to come true. But soon disaster struck.
“We went to our land to pick some olives,” Egged explains. “We went in two separate cars. My father took a different route back to our home in Idlib city. I warned him against it, but he insisted. His car hit a landmine and exploded.”
Aygd's father died instantly at the scene. Not only did he lose his father that day, he also lost his family's main source of income. Their agricultural land, covering an area of 100,000 square metres, was full of 50-year-old olive trees. It has now been classified as a dangerous minefield.
At least 144 people, including 27 children, have been killed by landmines and unexploded remnants of war since the fall of Bashar al-Assad's regime in early December, according to the HALO Trust, an international organization specializing in the clearance of landmines and other explosive devices.
The Syrian Civil Defense – known as the White Helmets – told the BBC that many of those killed were farmers and landowners who were trying to return to their lands after the collapse of the Assad regime.
Unexploded remnants of war pose a serious threat to life in Syria. They are mainly divided into two categories. The first is unexploded ordnance such as cluster bombs, mortars and grenades.
Hassan Talfah, who heads the White Helmets team to clear unexploded ordnance in northwestern Syria, explains that removing these devices is less difficult because they are usually visible above the ground.
The White Helmets organization says that, between November 27 and January 3, it removed about 822 unexploded ordnance in northwestern Syria.
Talfah says that the biggest challenge lies in the second category of munitions – landmines. He explains that former government forces planted hundreds of thousands of them in various areas in Syria – especially in agricultural lands.
Most of the deaths recorded since the fall of the Assad regime occurred on previous battlefronts, according to the White Helmets. Most of the dead were men.
Mr. Talfah took us to two huge fields filled with land mines. Our car followed him down a long, narrow, winding dirt road. It is the only safe way to reach the fields.
On both sides of the road, children are running around the area. Hassan tells us they are from families who have recently returned. But mine dangers surround them.
When we get out of the car, he points to a barrier in the distance.
He tells us: “This was the last point separating the areas under the control of government forces from those controlled by opposition groups” in Idlib Governorate.
He adds that Assad's forces planted thousands of mines in the fields behind the wall to prevent rebel forces from advancing.
The fields surrounding where we stand were once vital farmland. Today, it is all barren, and there is no visible greenery except the green tops of the landmines that we can see with binoculars.
With no experience in clearing landmines, all the White Helmets can do at the moment is cordon off these fields, and put up signs along their borders warning people.
They also spray warning messages on berms and houses around the edges of fields. They read “Danger – Landmines in the Future.”
They lead campaigns to raise awareness among local residents about the dangers of entering contaminated lands.
On our way back, we came across a farmer in his thirties who had recently returned. He tells us that some of the land belongs to his family.
“We couldn't identify any of them,” says Mohammed. Clearly frustrated, he added: “We used to grow wheat, barley, cumin, and cotton. Now we can't do anything. As long as we can't cultivate these lands, we will always remain in a bad economic condition.”
The White Helmets says it has identified and cordoned off some 117 minefields in just over a month.
They are not the only ones working to clear mines and unexploded ordnance, but there appears to be little coordination between the efforts of different organizations.
There are no accurate statistics for areas contaminated by unexploded ordnance or landmines. But international organizations, such as the HALO Trust, have drawn rough maps.
Damian O'Brien, director of the Hello Syria programme, says a comprehensive survey must be carried out so the country can understand the extent of the pollution. It is estimated that about one million devices will need to be destroyed to protect the lives of civilians in Syria.
“It is likely that some landmines will be planted around any Syrian army position as a defensive tactic,” says Mr O'Brien.
“In places like Homs and Hama, there are entire neighborhoods that have been almost completely destroyed. Anyone who goes into those buildings to assess them, either to demolish them or to rebuild them, should be aware that there may be unexploded materials there. Whether it is bullets, cluster munitions or bombs.” artillery or missiles.
BBC NewsThe White Helmets have found treasure that could aid demining efforts. In their office in Idlib, Mr. Talfah shows us a collection of maps and documents left behind by government forces.
It shows the locations, numbers, and types of mines planted in various fields in northwestern Syria.
“We will deliver these documents to the agencies that will deal directly with landmines,” says Mr. Talfah.
However, the local expertise currently available in Syria does not appear to be sufficient to combat the serious risks posed by unexploded ordnance to civilian lives.
Mr. O'Brien stresses that the international community needs to work alongside the new government in Syria to improve experiences in the country.
“What we need from donors is funding, so we can expand our capacity, which means hiring more people, buying more machines and working on a larger area,” he says.
As for Mr. Talfah, removing unexploded ordnance and raising awareness of its dangers has become a personal mission. Ten years ago, he lost his leg while removing a cluster bomb.
He says that his injury, and all the traumatic incidents he witnessed of children and civilians affected by unexploded ordnance, only increased his determination to continue working.
“I would never want any civilian or team member to go through what I went through,” he says.
“I cannot describe the feeling I get when I remove a threat to civilian lives.”
But until international and local efforts are coordinated to neutralize the threat of landmines, the lives of many civilians, especially children, remain at risk.
