Forest Fires Rage in Three Governorates in Syria

Photo: AFP
Photo: AFP
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Forest Fires Rage in Three Governorates in Syria

Photo: AFP
Photo: AFP

In the past two days, fires broke out in the governates of Homs, Tartus, and Latakia, burning swathes of land amid failure to contain them.

Raed Ibrahim, the mayor of Haffah in northeastern Latakia, warned on Friday of a “major disaster” if the fires reached the Agricultural Bank.

In statements to Al-Watan newspaper, Ibrahim appealed to authorities to send more firefighters and helicopters to extinguish the fire before the whole town burns down.

Syrian state television on Saturday morning broadcast scenes from the affected areas, where firefighters were working to extinguish the blazes.

Syria's Agriculture Minister Mohammed Hassan Qatana said dozens of fires were burning, including “45 in Latakia and 33 in Tartus.”

The Latakia fire brigade said they were “facing the largest series of fires seen in Latakia province in years.”

The Health Ministry said two people had died in Latakia province since Friday as a result of the fires, and that 70 people were taken to hospital suffering breathing difficulties.

Fires heavily damaged a building in Qardahah used as a storage for the state-owned tobacco company, part of which collapsed. The town’s local hospital was also surrounded by flames, according to local media reports.

While the fires reached large swathes of lands in Homs, Tartus, and Latakia countryside, the Russian forces stood idle.

Pro-regime residents expressed frustration towards the government performance and accused it of negligence. They also denounced the failure of Russia to rescue them, amid accusations that the fires were planned.

In response to these accusations, the authorities ordered investigating the reason behind the fires and handing over any possible committers to the competent authority.

Some Facebook pages, that are backed by the regime security forces, posed charges to terrorist groups affiliated with the opposition of standing behind the retaliation fires in pro-regime regions.



Heavy Rains Flood Khartoum Streets, Exposing Decomposed Bodies

A resident attempts to drain floodwaters outside home in Omdurman (Asharq Al-Awsat)
A resident attempts to drain floodwaters outside home in Omdurman (Asharq Al-Awsat)
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Heavy Rains Flood Khartoum Streets, Exposing Decomposed Bodies

A resident attempts to drain floodwaters outside home in Omdurman (Asharq Al-Awsat)
A resident attempts to drain floodwaters outside home in Omdurman (Asharq Al-Awsat)

Torrential rains battered several parts of Sudan’s Khartoum state this week, flooding residential neighborhoods and streets, disrupting movement, and sweeping away war debris, including decomposed corpses believed to belong to paramilitary fighters.

The rainfall began as sanitation workers were carrying out maintenance on stormwater drains. But before completing their task, the downpour caught them off guard, forcing them to begin draining the water with basic tools already in use.

Local authorities said residents in the East Nile district reported seeing decomposed bodies swept into drainage canals. Officials suspect the corpses may be those of fighters from the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF), which controlled swathes of the capital during its year-long war with the Sudanese army.

The RSF had held large parts of Khartoum since conflict erupted on April 15, 2023. But by March this year, the army claimed to have regained full control of the city. Since then, thousands of displaced families have returned home, according to state authorities, with more returning each day.

This year’s rainy season arrives amid the devastation of war, which has crippled already fragile infrastructure, particularly flood drainage systems. Even before the conflict, seasonal rains often caused widespread destruction in Khartoum, damaging homes and public facilities and resulting in casualties.

Despite extensive water pooling in open areas, Sudan’s Civil Defense Authority reported no fatalities or property losses. “Water was drained naturally, without any intervention from Civil Defense teams,” said Major General Qureshi, deputy director of emergency operations, in remarks to Asharq Al-Awsat.

Qureshi added that his teams remain on high alert, as a precaution, although Nile water levels remain stable.

Residents attempted to clear water from their homes by removing weeds and waste blocking drainage channels.

“During the RSF's control of the city, we tried to dig small trenches to divert the rainwater toward the main drains,” said resident Mohamed Elias. “But the blocked drains caused water to stagnate for months, leading to insect infestations and disease.”

Although thousands have returned to Khartoum, the national government has not fully re-established itself in the capital, which it fled in favor of Port Sudan, a Red Sea city now serving as a temporary seat of power. Khartoum’s governor, Ahmed Othman, previously told Asharq Al-Awsat that the government’s return to the capital would be gradual.

The International Organization for Migration (IOM) said over one million displaced Sudanese have returned to their areas of origin across the country, including in Khartoum.