Photo: Collected

DAMASCUS, Feb 8, 2026 (BSS/AFP) - Two children and a Syrian Red Crescent 
volunteer have died as a result of flooding in the country's northwest, state 
media said on Sunday.

The heavy rains in Syria's Idlib region and the coastal province of Latakia 
have also wreaked havoc in displacement camps, according to authorities, who 
have launched rescue operations and set up shelters in the areas.

State news agency SANA reported "the death of a Syrian Arab Red Crescent 
volunteer and the injury of four others as they carried out their 
humanitarian duties" in Latakia province.

The Syrian Red Crescent said in a statement that the "a mission vehicle 
veered into a valley", killing a female volunteer and injuring four others, 
as they went to rescue people stranded by flash floods.

"A fifth volunteer was injured while attempting to rescue a child trapped by 
the floodwaters," it added.

SANA said two children died on Saturday "due to heavy flooding that swept 
through the Ain Issa area" in the north of Latakia province.

Authorities said Sunday they were working to clear roads in displacement 
camps in flooded parts of Idlib province.

The emergencies and disaster management ministry said 14 displacement camps 
in part of Idlib province were affected, with tents swamped, belongings swept 
away and around 300 families directly impacted.

Around seven million people remain internally displaced in Syria, according 
to the United Nations refugee agency, some 1.4 million of them living in 
camps and sites in the country's northwest and northeast.

The December 2024 ouster of longtime ruler Bashar al-Assad after more than 13 
years of civil war revived hopes for many to return home, but the destruction 
of housing and a lack of basic infrastructure in heavily damaged areas has 
been a major barrier.