LM Report 2005

Syria

Key developments since 2004: In August 2005, the Syrian Army started clearance of two villages in the Golan Heights. In July 2004, the President of Syria issued a new national law to protect the rights of persons with disabilities.

Mine Ban Policy

The Syrian Arab Republic has not acceded to the Mine Ban Treaty. While expressing concern about the plight of landmine victims, Syria considers the antipersonnel mine as a necessary defensive weapon, and cites Israel’s continued annexation/occupation of the Golan Heights as an important reason for not joining the treaty.^{[1 ]} Syria stated in April 2004 that it has given priority in disarmament to weapons of mass destruction, as opposed to antipersonnel mines.^[2]

Syria did not participate in the First Review Conference of the Mine Ban Treaty in Nairobi in November-December 2004. Following its voting pattern in previous years, on 3 December 2004 Syria abstained from voting on UN General Assembly Resolution 59/84, which called for the universalization and full implementation of the Mine Ban Treaty. Two Geneva-based Syrian diplomats attended the treaty’s intersessional meetings in June 2005, but did not make any statements.

Landmine Monitor’s researcher for Syria, the Arab Network for Research on Landmines and Explosive Remnants of War, hosted a regional workshop on the risks of landmines and explosive remnants of war at Abaza Hospital in Qunaitra on 28-29 April 2005. An official from the Ministry of Defense attended the opening session, and other officials from the Governorate of Qunaitra made presentations about mine awareness activities.

Production, Transfer, Stockpiling and Use

Syria has not usually been identified as a producer or exporter of antipersonnel landmines. However, Jordan, a State Party to the Mine Ban Treaty, declared possessing 51 wooden antipersonnel mines of Syrian origin.^{[3 ]} An imprisoned Sudanese Army officer alleged that Sudan obtained antipersonnel mines from Syria in 2003, and antivehicle mines in 2000 and 2003.^{[4 ]} Syria has not enacted any unilateral measures to prohibit production or export of antipersonnel mines. The size and origin of Syria’s mine stockpile is not known. Syria is thought to have last used mines during the 1982 conflict with Israel in Lebanon.

Landmine and UXO Problem

The mine and unexploded ordnance (UXO) problem in Syria originates from Syrian involvement in the Israeli/Arab wars in 1948, 1956, 1967 and 1973. As a result of the 1973 war with Israel, large parts of the Golan Heights are heavily mined. The Golan, in southwest Syria, is divided into three areas, Syrian-controlled, Israeli-controlled and a buffer zone named the area of separation (AOS), which is monitored by the UN Disengagement Observer Force (UNDOF).

In 2005, UNDOF reported that mines continued to pose a threat to their own personnel as well as to local inhabitants, especially in the AOS. Owing to the age of the mines and the deteriorating explosives they contain, this threat is said to have increased.^{[5 ]} The most common mines in the AOS are type PMN 4 and 10 antipersonnel mines, and type TM 46, TM 57, MK 15 and Mark 71 antivehicle mines. In addition, many unexploded submunitions are also scattered throughout the AOS.^{[6 ]} One UNDOF vehicle was severely damaged by an item of UXO during the period 8 December 2004 to June 2005; there were no injuries to UNDOF personnel.^[7]

In 2004, UNDOF reported that in some of the Syrian-controlled areas, the minefields are not well marked or fenced, and civilian casualties occur on a regular basis. Civilians sometimes remove marking and fencing for other purposes. The Syrian Army has had to re-fence and re-mark fields a number of times.^{[8 ]} Antipersonnel mines in the mountainous and hilly areas of the Syrian zone of the Golan Heights and the AOS have been known to shift due to weather and the terrain.^{[9 ]}

Jordan planted nearly 67,000 antipersonnel mines along its border with Syria before 1973. It is not known if the Syrian side of the border with Jordan is mined. Syria stated in April 2004 that it has no antipersonnel minefields on its border with Israel.^{[10 ]}

Mine and UXO Clearance

There is no formal mine action program in Syria. UNDOF carries out mine clearance for operational purposes in the AOS. Clearance in Syria outside the AOS is the responsibility of the Syrian Armed Forces (SAF).^{[11 ]}

The Syrian authorities are said to be increasingly interested in using the area inside the AOS for agriculture, and to expand infrastructure by rebuilding villages. As a result, in August 2004, landmine and UXO clearance operations by the Syrian Army started in two villages in the AOS. When clearance in Hanoot Saida village in southern Golan has been completed, the village will be rebuilt in order to relocate internally displaced persons. The second operation, in Hameedia village, north of Qunaitra city, will allow expansion of the village into new areas. As both villages are located in the AOS, UNDOF has been involved in the planning and supervision of mine clearance tasks.^{[12 ]} The Syrian military team includes six persons for each operation supported by a medical emergency unit. There is no other information available on mine clearance activities by Syria, and the total number of Syrian army personnel trained in demining is not known.

UNDOF has deployed two demining teams in the AOS, composed of six UN peacekeepers each, to ensure the safety of “paths” used by UNDOF personnel. UNDOF also marks known minefields to warn the local population.^{[13 ]}

Syria’s border with Turkey was extensively mined by Turkey in 1956-1959; clearance was being planned by Turkey in 2004-2005.^{[14 ]}

Mine Risk Education

In January 2004, the governor of Qunaitra province bordering the Golan Heights established a committee to promote mine risk education (MRE) in affected border areas.^{[15 ]} The 12-person committee included governorate officials from the education, health, agriculture, youth, children, sports and social affairs sectors. Through March 2005, it held three meetings to review MRE activities.^{[16 ]}

MRE is also conducted as a part of the health education program run by government health centers in the affected areas, and through the Healthy Villages program. Signs and posters in the playground are used to raise awareness.^{[17 ]} The Qunaitra Health Directorate states that MRE conducted by the UNDOF peacekeeping force and UNICEF in the past have been discontinued.^{[18 ]} In 2005, no MRE was conducted in schools,^{[19 ]}but sporadic MRE activities were held by those organizing events, such as youth and children camps.^[20]

According to Syrian officials, Israel has not cooperated in any effort to alleviate the hardship faced by Syrian residents of Golan as a result of the landmines there.^{[21 ]} Syrian Foreign Ministry officials stated in March 2004 that Syria supports efforts to protect civilians in armed conflict areas, and promotes mine awareness.^{[22 ]}

Landmine/UXO Casualties

In 2004, Landmine Monitor identified three new mine/UXO casualties, including two people killed and one injured. On 29 March, a 15-year-old boy lost his right eye and left hand while handling what he thought was a small plastic box near the Turkish border. On 14 July, two men, aged 21 and 29 years, were killed as they rode a bicycle near a minefield in al-Makrez village in the Syrian Golan.^{[23 ]} This represents an increase from one boy killed by a landmine in 2003.^[24]

Casualties continued to be reported in 2005. On 26 April, three brothers (aged 16, 19 and 21 years) were injured in a UXO explosion in Aisha, a village near Khan Arnaba, while working the land.^{[25 ]} On 14 May, three children (two nine-year-olds and one 12-year-old) were killed in a mine explosion in Koudana village in Qunaitra, while playing in the fields. On 10 July, a ten-year-old boy was killed while playing with UXO in the Golan.^{[26 ]}

Landmine casualty data is not systematically collected in Syria and there is no centralized register. Therefore, the total number of mine casualties is not known. There have reportedly been 387 mine casualties in the Golan area, including 122 people killed and 265 injured.^{[27 ]}

Survivor Assistance

The Syrian government continues to provide basic health and social services free of charge.^{[28 ]} In Khan Arnaba, a community center and government-run physiotherapy center provides basic rehabilitation services for people with physical and mental disabilities. The center reopened in April 2004. No landmine survivors benefited from the services at the community center in 2004.^{[29 ]} However, a small number of landmine survivors reportedly benefited from the services provided by the physiotherapy center.^[30]

On 28 April 2005, the 200-bed Mamdooh Abaza Hospital in Khan Arnaba was officially opened in the presence of the Minister of Health and the Ambassador of Japan. The hospital, which includes surgical facilities, was financed by the Ministry of Health and the Japanese government, which provided a US$4.2 million grant for medical equipment. The hospital provides healthcare and surgical services to 150,000 residents living in Qunaitra region, and from many villages in the governorates of Dara’a and Sweida.^{[31 ]} To July 2005, no landmine casualties or survivors had been registered at the hospital.^{[32 ]} Before the hospital opened, survivors had to travel to Damascus to receive specialized medical care and surgery, physical rehabilitation, prosthetics, wheelchairs and special education.^[33]

In 2004, the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), in partnership with the Palestinian Red Crescent, continued to support Palestinian refugees with disabilities in Syria at the orthopedic center in the compound of the Palestinian Hospital in Yarmouk refugee camp. The center is the only facility providing physical rehabilitation services for Palestinian refugees. The Palestinian Red Crescent covers the cost of salaries and utilities, and ICRC provides materials, components and technical support. In 2004, more than 550 people received physical rehabilitation services, and the center produced 337 prostheses (13 for mine survivors) and 222 orthoses (three for mine survivors), and distributed 83 crutches. An assessment by ICRC showed the need to upgrade the services offered by the center.^{[34 ]} In the first six months of 2005, the center assisted another 147 amputees, including 19 landmine/UXO survivors.^{[35 ]}

Other organizations assisting persons with disabilities, including mine survivors, in the mine-affected areas include the Syrian Society for the Physically Disabled (SSPD) and Syrian Society for the Blind. SSPD distributes up to 500 wheelchairs and assists more than 300 people with medical apparatus and artificial limbs each year. SSPD also organizes social and recreational activities, and educational and vocational training throughout the country, with funding from local donors and the Ministry of Social Affairs and Labor.^{[36 ]}

In the Qunaitra area, the ministry reportedly runs a program called Support for Victims of Landmines and Disabled People, which provides referrals to medical and rehabilitation services, vocational training and a credit scheme.^{[37 ]}

One landmine survivor from Syria participated in the Raising the Voices training in Geneva in June 2004, the First Review Conference in Nairobi in November-December 2004, and a training session organized by Landmine Survivors Network in Amman, Jordan in April 2005.

In 2004, the Raising the Voices graduate assisted with the establishment of the Society of Landmine Survivors in Qunaitra; however, it has no office and activities are limited.^{[38 ]}

Disability Policy and Practice

On 19 July 2004, the President issued a new national law (Number 34/2004) to protect the rights of persons with disabilities, which includes provisions for free health and social services, as well as education and training. The law was issued by the Minister of Social Affairs and Labor on 25 January 2005, and copies were circulated to all relevant ministries.^{[39 ]}

From 12 to 14 February 2005, the Arab Organization of Disabled People organized a workshop on capacity-building, advocacy skills and leadership training for people with disabilities.^[40] 

On 18 March 2005, during the Arab Parliamentary Symposium on Disability Legislation, the Arab Network for Research on Landmines and Explosive Remnants of War called upon Arab states to join the Mine Ban Treaty, and highlighted the rights and needs of landmine survivors, including their rights for rehabilitation and integration services, and compensation.^{[41 ]}

^{[1 ]}Interview with the Director of International Organizations and Conferences Department, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, 16 December 2002.

^[2] Statement by Syria, Seminar on Military and Humanitarian Issues Surrounding the Mine Ban Treaty, Amman, Jordan, 19-21 April 2004.

^{[3 ]}Jordan Article 7 Report, Form B, 9 August 1999.

^{[4 ]}Human Rights Watch interview, Kober Prison, North Khartoum, 21 October 2004. See Sudan country report for more details.

^{[5 ]}“Report of the Secretary-General on the United Nations Disengagement Observer Force from 8 December 2004 to 10 June 2005,” S2005/379, 10 June 2005, p. 2.

^{[6 ]}Email from Patrick Tillet, Program Officer, UNMAS, 24 May 2005.

^[7] “Report of the Secretary-General on the United Nations Disengagement Observer Force from 8 December 2004 to 10 June 2005,” S2005/379, 10 June 2005, p. 2.

^{[8 ]}“Report of the Secretary-General on the UN Disengagement Observer Force for the Period from 9 December 2003 to 21 June 2004,” S/2004/499, 21 June 2004, p. 2.

^{[9 ]}Email from Patrick Tillet, UNMAS, 24 May 2005.

^{[10 ]}Statement by Gen. F. Ghalya, Representative of the Syrian Army, Seminar on Military and Humanitarian Issues Surrounding the Mine Ban Treaty, Amman, Jordan, 19-21 April 2004.

^{[11 ]}Email from Lt. Col. S. Kaiser, CLPO UNDOF HQ, Syria, 16 August 2005.

^{[12 ]}Email from Lt. Col. S. Kaiser, CLPO UNDOF HQ, Syria, 16 August 2005.

^{[13 ]}Email from Lt. Col. S. Kaiser, CLPO UNDOF HQ, Syria, 16 August 2005.

^{[14 ]}See report on Turkey in this edition of Landmine Monitor.

^{[15 ]}Administrative Order No. 402-10-12, Governor of Qunaitra Province, 10 January 2004.

^{[16 ]}Interview with Dr. Rabi Othman, Area Officer, Qunaitra Health Directorate, Qunaitra, 29 April 2005.

^{[17 ]}Information provided by Dr. Ghassan Shahrour, Coordinator, Arab Network for Research on Landmines and Explosive Remnants of War, Syria, 29 April 2005.

^{[18 ]}Interview with Dr. Rabi Othman, Qunaitra Health Directorate, Qunaitra, 29 April 2005.

^{[19 ]}Telephone interview with Dr. Rabi Othman, Qunaitra Health Directorate, Qunaitra, 14 May 2005.

^[20] Information provided by Dr. Ghassan Shahrour, Arab Network for Research on Landmines and Explosive Remnants of War, Syria, 29 April 2005.

^{[21 ]}Letter No.144 (41/77) to the Arab Network for Research on Landmines and Explosive Remnants of War from the Syrian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, 28 March 2004.

^{[22 ]}Letter No.144 (41/77) to the Arab Network for Research on Landmines and Explosive Remnants of War from the Syrian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, 28 March 2004.

^{[23 ]}Telephone interview with Dr. Rabi Othman, Qunaitra Health Directorate, Qunaitra, 29 April 2005.

^[24] For details see Landmine Monitor 2004, p. 1133.

^{[25 ]}Interview with Dr. Rabi Othman, Qunaitra Health Directorate, Qunaitra, 29 April 2005.

^{[26 ]}Telephone interview with Dr. Rabi Othman, Qunaitra Health Directorate, Qunaitra, 27 July 2005

^{[27 ]}For more information, see Landmine Monitor Report 2004, p. 1133.

^{[28 ]}For more information, see Landmine Monitor Report 2004, p. 1133.

^{[29 ]}Telephone interview with Dr. Hussam Doghoz, Director, Society of Landmine Survivors, Qunaitra 22 June 2005; see also Landmine Monitor Report 2004, p. 1134.

^[30] Interview with Dr. Rabi Othman, Qunaitra Health Directorate, Qunaitra, 29 April 2005.

^{[31 ]}“Thousands benefit from latest technology in new hospital,” IRIN, 8 May 2005; “The Minister of Health opens Abaza Hospital,” Syrian Arab News, 28 April 2005, www.sana.org.

^{[32 ]}Interview with Mirheg Mustafa, Deputy Director, Mamdooh Abaza Hospital, Khan Arnaba, 5 July 2005.

^[33] See Landmine Monitor Report 2004, pp. 1134-1135.

^{[34 ]}ICRC Physical Rehabilitation Program, “Annual Report 2004,” Geneva, July 2005, pp. 40, 44.

^{[35 ]}Interview with Amal Abdul Hamid, Director, Orthopedic Center, Yarmouk, 5 July 2005.

^{[36 ]}“Charitable society gives disabled confidence,” IRIN, 11 May 2005; see also Landmine Monitor Report 2004, p. 1134.

^{[37 ]}Standing Tall Australia and Mines Action Canada, “101 Great Ideas for the Socio-Economic Reintegration of Mine Survivors,” June 2005, p. 78.

^{[38 ]}Telephone interview with Dr. Hussam Doghoz, Society of Landmine Survivors, Qunaitra, 22 June 2005.

^{[39 ]}Telephone interview with Ahmed Knaifer, Disability Department, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Damascus, 22 June 2005.

^[40] Disabled People’s International, “DPI Happenings,” www.dpi.org.

^{[41 ]}Arab Network for Research on Landmines and Explosive Remnants of War, “Arab Parliamentary Symposium on Disability Legislation,” Press Release, Damascus, 18 March 2005.