Cholera Outbreak in Syria Provokes Warnings of ‘Health Disaster’

A Syrian woman with her cholera-infected child (AP)
A Syrian woman with her cholera-infected child (AP)
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Cholera Outbreak in Syria Provokes Warnings of ‘Health Disaster’

A Syrian woman with her cholera-infected child (AP)
A Syrian woman with her cholera-infected child (AP)

The cholera outbreak in Syria is affecting all regions, regardless of the forces in control. Regime-run areas, however, are proving to be most affected by the epidemic.

Concerns are intensifying as more cholera cases are being reported from overcrowded refugee camps, where the necessities of life, like potable water, are not available.

Official statistics published by the Syrian Health Ministry showed that the governorates of Aleppo and Deir Ezzor in northern and eastern Syria had the largest number of cholera cases.

Damascus has been trying to impose strict measures to curb the spread of cholera.

The epidemic’s death toll in regime-controlled areas has risen to 44, according to the ministry. At least 908 infections have been reported as well.

The ministry recorded 558 infections in Aleppo, 165 in Deir Ezzor, 68 in Hasaka, 33 in Raqqa, 28 in Lattakia, 19 in As-Suwayda, 11 in Damascus, ten in Hama, seven in Homs, five in Daraa, and two in the Damascus countryside, and one in each of Quneitra and Tartous.

According to Damascus, two more people died because of cholera infection in northeastern Syria.

The Syrian capital urged health workers to continue reporting suspected cases.

Najat Rochdi, Deputy Special Envoy of the Secretary-General for Syria, warned on Friday that the cholera outbreak could become “catastrophic.”

“Aid is urgently needed, and sustainable and unhindered access to affected communities is imperative,” said Rochdi.

Earlier, the UN attributed the rise in cholera cases in Syria to severe decline in Euphrates River water level, drought-like conditions, and people recourse to unsecured water sources.

Reports indicate that more than five million people in Syria depend on the Euphrates River for drinking water.

Since the outbreak was declared on Sept.10, UNICEF has distributed 60 acute watery diarrhea (AWD) kits in the most affected governorates to support the treatment at health facility and community level.



Israeli Missile Hits Gaza Children Collecting Water

A Palestinian woman reacts as a young man carries the body of her child killed in an Israeli strike, in front of Gaza City's Maamadani (Baptist) hospital on July 13, 2025. (Photo by Omar AL-QATTAA / AFP)
A Palestinian woman reacts as a young man carries the body of her child killed in an Israeli strike, in front of Gaza City's Maamadani (Baptist) hospital on July 13, 2025. (Photo by Omar AL-QATTAA / AFP)
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Israeli Missile Hits Gaza Children Collecting Water

A Palestinian woman reacts as a young man carries the body of her child killed in an Israeli strike, in front of Gaza City's Maamadani (Baptist) hospital on July 13, 2025. (Photo by Omar AL-QATTAA / AFP)
A Palestinian woman reacts as a young man carries the body of her child killed in an Israeli strike, in front of Gaza City's Maamadani (Baptist) hospital on July 13, 2025. (Photo by Omar AL-QATTAA / AFP)

At least eight Palestinians, most of them children, were killed and more than a dozen were wounded in central Gaza when they went to collect water on Sunday, local officials said.

The Israeli military said the missile had intended to hit an Islamic Jihad militant in the area but that a malfunction had caused it to fall "dozens of meters from the target".

"The IDF regrets any harm to uninvolved civilians," it said in a statement, adding that the incident was under review.

The strike hit a water distribution point in Nuseirat refugee camp, killing six children and injuring 17 others, said Ahmed Abu Saifan, an emergency physician at Al-Awda Hospital.

Water shortages in Gaza have worsened sharply in recent weeks, with fuel shortages causing desalination and sanitation facilities to close, making people dependent on collection centers where they can fill up their plastic containers.

Hours later, 12 people were killed by an Israeli strike on a market in Gaza City, including a prominent hospital consultant, Ahmad Qandil, Palestinian media reported. The Israeli military did not immediately comment on the attack.

Gaza's health ministry said on Sunday that more than 58,000 people had been killed since the start of the war between Israel and Hamas in October 2023, with 139 people added to the death toll over the past 24 hours.

Negotiations aimed at securing a ceasefire appeared to be deadlocked, with the two sides divided over the extent of an eventual Israeli withdrawal from the Palestinian enclave, Palestinian and Israeli sources said at the weekend.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was set to convene ministers late on Sunday to discuss the latest developments in the talks, an Israeli official said.

The indirect talks over a US proposal for a 60-day ceasefire are being held in Doha, but optimism that surfaced last week of a looming deal has largely faded, with both sides accusing each other of intransigence.

Netanyahu in a video he posted on Telegram on Sunday said Israel would not back down from its core demands - releasing all the hostages still in Gaza, destroying Hamas and ensuring Gaza will never again be a threat to Israel.