Landmine explosion kills three children in Qamishli countryside

QAMISHLI, Syria (North Press) – Three children were killed on Wednesday after a landmine exploded in a village near Tel Kocher/al-Yarubiya in the eastern countryside of Qamishli, according to local sources.

A resident of the village told North Press that the victims were identified as Sanad al-Sayer, Kulman al-Sayer, and Saray Ahmed al-Saray, who lost their lives when the landmine detonated in Suwaydia village, part of the rural area of Tel Kocher near the Iraqi border.

The source said that, as of Wednesday afternoon, the families of the victims had been unable to retrieve the bodies due to the high concentration of unexploded landmines in the area where the incident occurred. “The area is heavily contaminated with mines, making access extremely dangerous,” the source said.

According to the same source, several minefields remain scattered between the villages of al-Marja and Kharab Binyan, as well as between Rmeilan al-Sheikh and al-Subaihiya, posing a direct and ongoing threat to civilians, particularly children who often play or move through open land.

Large parts of northeast Syria continue to suffer from contamination by landmines and unexploded ordnance left behind after years of conflict involving multiple military actors. These remnants of war remain one of the most serious humanitarian challenges facing local communities, despite relative security stability in many areas.

The incident underscores the continuing risks faced by civilians in northeast Syria, as efforts to remove war remnants remain ongoing amid calls for increased international support for de-mining operations.

By Atoun Jan