'I saw the fire, then heard the blast': Deraa's fields peppered with explosives from Syria's civil war
In a former quarry surrounded by farmland outside the city of Deraa in southern Syria, experts are preparing to detonate an unexploded Russian missile left over from the war. A shepherd discovered it a few days earlier in a nearby field. Everything involving the detonation is carefully calculated: the missile's size and its location above ground help determine that the blast radius will be 250…
In a quarry outside Deraa, experts are set to detonate a Russian missile from Syria's civil war. A shepherd found the missile earlier and helped guide its controlled explosion. The blast is expected to affect a 250-meter radius with flying fragments reaching up to 900 meters. Local shepherds are aware of the danger but continue to bring their flocks to the fields.
Injuries from explosives are common, with over 800 deaths and 2,300 injuries reported since the Assad regime fell in Syria. Deraa is seeing a surge in residents returning, putting them at risk of encountering mines and unexploded devices. Israeli actions in the region have contributed to the scattering of regime weapons. Shepherds like Ghiyath Ibn Ja’adan, who recently lost sheep to a mine, fear for their children's safety and struggle to teach them about the dangers.
Written by urgent.news from The National UAE's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
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