Iraq sends firefighters and water tankers to battle Syria forest fires
Already crews from Turkey, Jordan and Lebanon are engaged in firefighting work across the governorate of Latakia, where the flames have forced villagers to evacuate their homes.
A spokesman for Iraq's Civil Defence Directorate said on Thursday that the teams 'are currently in the preparation phase and they will head to Syria in the coming hours'.
'We are working on completing the logistical issues,' Iraq's state-run news agency reported him as saying.
The fires had formed a 'towering, deep valley' in areas near the town of Qastal Maaf, said Raed Al Saleh, Syria's Minister of Emergency and Disaster Management. The location is considered one of the most rugged and difficult points for the firefighting crews to reach, he added.
Mr Al Saleh thanked Iraq for sending ground firefighting teams, Syrian state news agency Sana reported. On Wednesday, he had said Syria also appealed to the EU for help.
The wildfires have been rampaging across Latakia and Tartus governorates, including around the city of Baniyas in Tartus. Villagers have been evacuated from their homes in Latakia's Ras Al Basit district. Strong winds, rugged terrain and unexploded ordnance have been hindering firefighting efforts, authorities say.
Syria's coastal region contains most of its green space, covering about 4,000 square kilometres − 2 per cent of the country's land mass − according to data recorded in 2010, shortly before the country's civil war broke out.
But Syria's forests have been affected by decades of illegal logging along with unlicensed building and farming, particularly during the 13-year war.
The country was once a regional breadbasket but is now undergoing one of its worst droughts in decades. In the late 2000s, Syria became a wheat importer due to a lack of rain and the illegal use of wells, which affected underground reservoirs.
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The National
2 days ago
- The National
'You don't get to rest': relentless battle against fires in Syria's coast hampered by landmines
Despite hours of relentless effort, firefighters have not been able to contain the flames consuming the once-lush valley of Qastal Maaf, a village in Syria's Latakia province. 'It's out of control,' one firefighter shouted to his fellow rescuers, as the flames quickly gained ground. Apocalyptic scenes have emerged along Syria's coastal region, as unprecedented blazes have swept through the area for more than 10 days. In Qastal Maaf, the sky turned orange in the haze and ash rained down like snow, carried across Syria's coast by strong winds. Panicked birds circled the smoke-choked sky, their chirps now desperate cries. The battle fought by firefighters that day was one of many they faced over the week. Syria's worst drought in decades and parched soil have whipped devastating blazes, torching more than 15,000 hectares across Latakia − an area bigger than Paris − including agricultural land and crops. That afternoon, the firefighters lost the fight. Despite the efforts of the Syrian Civil Defence, supported by several fire vehicles deployed from Turkey – one of the neighbouring countries that offered assistance – the fire only grew bigger, ripping through the hillside. 'Civilians, leave now,' firefighters ordered. The UN Resident and Humanitarian Co-ordinator in Syria, Adam Abdelmoula, said the wildfires had 'catastrophic consequences on local communities and require our immediate attention'. The UN announced the allocation of $625,000 to support emergency response efforts. The National embedded on Friday with the Syrian Civil Defence, whose members shared the challenges they face in responding to the catastrophe. These include a lack of equipment, the threat of unexploded war ordnance and rough roads. 'The challenges are clear. The mountain roads are difficult. We've had to open paths using chains to reach certain points and access the burning valleys,' Osama Aswad, a responder with the White Helmets, an internationally praised rescue organisation that operated in opposition-held areas, told The National. Deadly legacy Firefighters said they had to use bulldozers to carve paths through forest to reach the raging fires. But the operation is fraught with danger: the land there is full of unexploded ordnance, a deadly legacy across Syria, including Latakia region, which was once among the front lines of Syria's 13-year civil war. In 2014, the part of Latakia now affected by the fire was at the centre of intense fighting between rebels, including the Al Nusra Front- a previous name of the main group within Hayat Tahrir Al Sham, whose leader Ahmad Al Shara is now Syria's President - and former Syrian government forces. Following the surprise offensive by opposition groups, the battle to recapture the region left the land contaminated with unexploded ordnance. This danger has hampered civil defence efforts to tackle the blazes, leading to frustration among fire crews. 'Because there are landmines here, we couldn't go up further,' said civil defence member Turki Sahel, gesturing at burning greenery, the tip of a massive fire that had engulfed the rest of the area. During operations, rescuers have become accustomed to the sound of landmines detonating from the heat, these occasional booms joining the roar of the fire. 'Honestly, it's a hard feeling, if the area were clear, we would have gone in,' added Mr Sahel, as the white haze from the flames thickened, shrouding the area completely. Aerial support has proven essential for accessing contaminated areas. 'We alert the operations unit to see if aerial support is possible,' said Mr Aswad. Above the firefighters, Turkish aircraft could be seen circling overhead. 'You don't get to rest' Efforts have been relentless. At makeshift resting point, a few firefighters are sleeping between shifts tackling the wildfire. Most haven't slept for more than two hours at a time in a week. 'The rest areas here are just for quick breaks, people rest for two or three hours and then go back to work,' Rawad Tobaji, 30, volunteer with the White Helmets since 2016, told The National. The space is sparse: a stove for coffee, a few food parcels and a handful of mattresses laid directly on the ground. 'The job is non-stop, we don't get long rest periods. You never know when a fire might flare up, so you always have to be ready,' he added. Rescue teams also lack equipment to face the disaster as Syria is still reeling from a steep economic crisis as years of w estern sanctions, and more than a decade of conflict have left institutions in tatters. Most of them were wearing simple Covid mask against the fumes. 'Generally, the focus of our needs is on logistical support: diesel, firefighting hoses, spare parts, and bulldozers and heavy engineering equipment,' Raed Saleh, Syria's Minister of Disaster Management and Emergency Response, told The National on Thursday. Mr Saleh was the head of the White Helmets before being appointed to the ministerial role in March. The White Helmets have recently announced that they will join state institutions as the country attempts to reunite, after the fall of former president Bashar Al Assad last December. Since the fires broke out, Mr Saleh has remained on the ground with civil defence teams. Other countries have sent reinforcements to assist, including Turkey, Lebanon, Iraq and Jordan. The disaster has sparked a wave of solidarity. Some came spontaneously as volunteers, like Othman Taleb, from Lebanese youth-led environmental organisation Akkar Trail. 'Because Syria and Lebanon have always been one hand, one people. Borders don't divide us, and God willing, nothing ever will,' said Mr Taleb. 'Their forests are our forests, and their people are our people.' Fires were still raging on Saturday in Latakia province while blazes had also erupted in other areas on Friday. Two major wildfires have also broken out in Syria's central Hama province.
The National
4 days ago
- The National
'Everything is burnt': Devastated Syrians mourn their forests and farms as wildfires ravage coastal region
Mohammad Awana spoke quickly and repeated himself often, struggling to describe the scale of the loss he is facing. 'It's gone, gone, gone, I'm telling you, everything burnt: forests, farmland, olive groves, vegetables. Even the animals weren't spared,' he said. The relentless wildfires that have ravaged Syria's coastal region for the past week have taken a heavy toll on the 68-year-old farmer from Latakia. Syria's worst drought in decades and strong winds have fuelled the flames of the unprecedented blazes. 'Everything we've built over decades, forests that took hundreds of years to grow, gone,' Mr Awana added, standing at a distribution point where dozens of residents affected by the disaster were queuing for food parcels. Like him, thousands of people have been left reeling from the fierce blazes in a region that relies heavily on farming for survival. Mr Awana said he lost 3,000 square metres of land to the fires, 'mostly olives and pomegranates, nothing is left', he said. It will take years for the trees to recover. 'We're coming out of 14 years of war. Everyone's already at rock bottom,' he added. Driving deep into northern Latakia governorate feels like reaching the end of the world. The once lush hills of Syria's coast have been reduced to barren land. Mountains are covered in black dust, stripped of their vibrant green carpet, and crops lie in ashes. 'This is unprecedented in terms of size and intensity,' said Raed Saleh, Syria's Minister of Disaster Management and Emergency Response, speaking to The National just a few hundred metres from a forest still ablaze. The area was cordoned off by security forces and civil defence teams due to the danger. The flames have scorched more than 15,000 hectares of agricultural land and forests, Mr Saleh said, the equivalent of 150 square kilometres – an area larger than Paris. 'We've never seen anything like this before. Right now, I can't estimate the cost of the losses,' he added. Mr Saleh was the head of the White Helmets, the internationally recognised volunteer rescue organisation that operated in opposition-held parts of Syria, before being appointed as a minister in January. Since the fires broke out, he has remained stationed on the ground with civil defence teams. The interview was repeatedly interrupted by the sound of landmines exploding in the burning brush. 'Do you hear that?' he said. 'You have to see for yourself the level of danger our teams are facing. Their safety remains a priority, as well as of civilians.' Landmines, extreme heat and lack of resources On top of battling strong winds, rugged terrain and extreme heat, firefighters are dealing with the deadly legacy of war. More than a decade of conflict has left Syria heavily contaminated with landmines and other explosive remnants, which have killed hundreds since the fall of Bashar Al Assad's regime in December 2024. A threat to displaced civilians returning to their homes, these munitions are now a danger to firefighters as they detonate under intense heat. Firefighters told The National that unexploded ordnance was the main obstacle hindering civil defence operations. Rescue teams are also ill-equipped to deal with a disaster of this scale. The country is struggling after years of crippling western sanctions against the Assad regime, which were lifted only recently as the interim government led by former rebel fighters gained international recognition. 'Generally, the focus of our needs is on logistical support: diesel, firefighting hoses, spare parts, and bulldozers and heavy engineering equipment,' Mr Saleh said. Crews from Turkey, Jordan, Lebanon and Iraq have been deployed in Latakia. Syrian authorities on Tuesday appealed to the EU for help. UN teams have been sent to the area to 'determine the scale of the disaster'. The challenges appear not to have affected the morale of the firefighters, who have been working relentlessly for days. Dozens of lorries were seen moving through the affected areas, amid shouts of civil defence teams wrapped in the heavy white smoke from the blazes they are battling. 'It was terrifying' Mr Saleh said their efforts had stopped the blazes from reaching villages. 'So far, there has been no threat to any residential areas,' he said. Hussein Sbeih, 28, is among the residents who had to leave their village in a hurry. 'It started as a small fire, which had ignited the day before. At the time it seemed under control, but suddenly, the entire area was on fire,' he said. Mazraa Beit Sabeh, his village, was heavily affected, but the flames stopped short of reaching the houses. Most of the village fled on foot, although some residents stayed behind to help civil defence teams, he said. 'I was scared. It was terrifying. The most important thing was to get out safely,' Mr Sbeih said. The blazes caused some injuries, but the land paid a heavy price. Mr Sbeih estimated that the village lost about half its agricultural land. Most of the village's olive trees were reduced to ashes. The few that survived have turned yellow from the heat, their branches fading to the colour of straw. Some of them, he said, were 50 years old.
The National
4 days ago
- The National
Iraq sends firefighters and water tankers to battle Syria forest fires
Iraq is sending firefighters, water tankers and other equipment to help battle forest blazes in coastal Syria, as a multinational effort to extinguish the flames enters a ninth day. Already crews from Turkey, Jordan and Lebanon are engaged in firefighting work across the governorate of Latakia, where the flames have forced villagers to evacuate their homes. A spokesman for Iraq's Civil Defence Directorate said on Thursday that the teams 'are currently in the preparation phase and they will head to Syria in the coming hours'. 'We are working on completing the logistical issues,' Iraq's state-run news agency reported him as saying. The fires had formed a 'towering, deep valley' in areas near the town of Qastal Maaf, said Raed Al Saleh, Syria's Minister of Emergency and Disaster Management. The location is considered one of the most rugged and difficult points for the firefighting crews to reach, he added. Mr Al Saleh thanked Iraq for sending ground firefighting teams, Syrian state news agency Sana reported. On Wednesday, he had said Syria also appealed to the EU for help. The wildfires have been rampaging across Latakia and Tartus governorates, including around the city of Baniyas in Tartus. Villagers have been evacuated from their homes in Latakia's Ras Al Basit district. Strong winds, rugged terrain and unexploded ordnance have been hindering firefighting efforts, authorities say. Syria's coastal region contains most of its green space, covering about 4,000 square kilometres − 2 per cent of the country's land mass − according to data recorded in 2010, shortly before the country's civil war broke out. But Syria's forests have been affected by decades of illegal logging along with unlicensed building and farming, particularly during the 13-year war. The country was once a regional breadbasket but is now undergoing one of its worst droughts in decades. In the late 2000s, Syria became a wheat importer due to a lack of rain and the illegal use of wells, which affected underground reservoirs.
