Uh oh, you are using an old web browser that we no longer support. Some of this website's features may not work correctly because of this. Learn about updating to a more modern browser here.

Skip To Content

Syria: Thousands of children and families flee Idlib fighting

A bullet hole in a school in northern Syria. The upsurge in fighting in Idlib has led to he collapse of essential services.
A bullet hole in a school in northern Syria. The upsurge in fighting in Idlib has led to the collapse of essential services.

Thousands of children and families have been forced from their homes in the latest round of fighting in Idlib and many more may have to flee as public services have all but collapsed.

Our staff have already documented almost 15,000 people who have fled their homes and it’s feared that thousands more could seek refuge in other parts of the country because of further attacks and destroyed infrastructure.

Staff who were in Idlib say schools and hospitals are closed and only a few shops remain open.

Devastating effects

“This weekend I stood with a distraught Syrian father as his 7 year old son, struck by a missile in his home in Idlib, was hurriedly wheeled into surgery with massive head injuries,” said our Syria country director Martha Myers.

“The father, clutching a blood-soaked yellow sweatshirt, had no idea where the rest of his family was, including his 45-day-old baby.

“This moment was emblematic of the savage consequences of the Syrian conflict on its children, and on-going need for the work of courageous Syrian aid workers.”

Traumatised

Children are also displaying signs of trauma following days of intense conflict with their parents reporting sleeping problems, anxiety and bedwetting.

Our teams in the areas surrounding  Idlib where displaced families are settling have noted that most are currently living with local families, while others are making their way towards the camps on the northern border with Turkey.

Families are in urgent need of clean water, blankets and mattresses, clothes and food.

Our teams are helping

Working in coordination with other agencies on the ground, Save the Children is providing vulnerable families with access to clean water, blankets, mattresses, cooking equipment and other essential items.

We are also working with local communities to keep children safe from harm.

We’ve been providing support to children and their families in Syria for more than two years, offering more than half a million children access to education, healthcare, food, protective services and shelter.

Help us provide urgent aid to the children of Syria:

Donate now to our Syria Crisis Appeal

Share this article