On Wednesday, May 28, 2025, four children, all from the village of al-Bana (al-Janabra) in the eastern countryside of Hama Governorate, were injured with varying degrees of severity when a landmine exploded while they were playing near a house in the village. It should be noted that the area is under the control of the transitional government.
According to what the Syrian Network for Human Rights documented from reliable local sources, the injured children are:
Children: Habous Safwan al-Hamid (13 years old).
Children: Lamia Raed al-Hamid (7 years old).
Children: Rahaf Ayham al-Khalif (9 years old).
Children: Safwan Ayham al-Khalif (10 years old).
This area is among the sites that have witnessed changes in control between the parties to the conflict, making determining who planted the mine extremely complex.
Legal Conclusions
- The mine explosion that injured 4 children while they were engaging in a peaceful civilian activity (playing) is an example of how the effects of conflict continue to threaten the lives of civilians.
- The continued presence of landmines in populated areas or close to civilian activity, without their removal or warning to the population of their presence, constitutes a violation of positive protection obligations under international humanitarian law, in particular Article 10 of the Amended Protocol to the Convention on Conventional Weapons (CCW) on mines, booby-traps and improvised explosive devices.
- The failure of controlling parties to provide mine maps or place clear warning signs exposes civilians to death or injury and constitutes a violation of the principle of the duty to warn and inform stipulated in international humanitarian law.
- The inability to identify the party that planted the mine raises the issue of evading responsibility, which requires an independent investigation and emphasizes the need for comprehensive documentation of war remnants and contamination sites to avoid recurring incidents.
- The continued presence of mines in civilian areas constitutes a threat to the right to life and physical integrity.
Recommendations by SNHR
- Open an urgent investigation into the incident to determine which parties to the conflict planted mines in the area and hold the responsible party legally responsible for negligence or deliberate action.
- Accelerate land mine clearance operations, particularly in agricultural and pastoral areas close to population centers, in cooperation with international organizations such as the United Nations Mine Action Service (UNMAS), the Syrian Arab Red Crescent, and the Syrian Civil Defense.
- Prepare comprehensive and updated maps of mines and remnants of war and disseminate them at the local level, with clear warning signs in all suspected areas, particularly those under the effective control of forces on the ground.
- Implement comprehensive local awareness campaigns targeting residents of rural areas and camps, on the dangers of mines and how to identify and avoid them, in cooperation with civil society organizations.
- Providing direct support to the families of victims, through urgent financial compensation, providing psychological and social support, and including them in programs to assist victims of war remnants.
