Estimated 250,000 internally displaced persons from the eastern countryside of Hama are still suffering from dire humanitarian and sanitary conditions, after their massive exodus to makeshift camps in Idlib province as a result of the military campaign[1] launched by the Syrian regular forces and their allies that could consequently control the area by the end of 201. Recently, cases of arrests and detentions of civilians was recorded from the region on various backgrounds.
The displaced persons who are from about 230 villages, which are controlled by the Syrian regular forces such as al-Hamra, al-Saen, al-Saboura, and some villages that follow Soran area, are scattered over 40 random camps in Ma'arat al-Nu'man, the vicinity of Sarmda town and in the camps near the border line with Turkey, where most of them lack the basic needs of life and adequate healthcare.
Manahi al-Ahmed, a local activist who lives in Idlib countryside, said in an interview with STJ on July 23, 2018, that more than half of the randomly established camps suffer from lack of water, health services, sanitation and relief assistance, and disease prevalent, whereas some services such as water and bread are provided to the rest of the camps. Concerning healthcare and vaccines, they are available at only 50% in some camps. It should be recalled that many cases of malnutrition among children have been recorded.
The displaced children in the makeshift camps are 40% and the women around 35%, according to al-Ahmed, who added that some incidents of marriages of underaged girls were recorded due to miserable living conditions. Bawaba Idlib posted a video footage showing the suffering of the displaced persons in a makeshift camp in Ma'arat al-Nu'man, illustrating the deteriorating of the health and humanitarian conditions plus the lack of sanitation. A displaced person identified as Abu Mohammad says that there is a lack of services, and the elderly patients and they suffer from complete lack of water and electricity, so they are forced to buy water for drinking and for use from their own money.
According to the activist, about 300 displaced families returned to their villages in Hama countryside, where more than 50 people, including women, were arrested and detained in May and June 2018. On July 14, 2018, the Syrian regular forces also arrested four youths from the village of Dahrojiya following their return on charges of belonging to the Free Syrian Army (FSA), some of the youths are Ahmed Khalid al-Dahrouj, 19 years old, Anasa ajan al-Me'zef, 25-year-old, and Ahmed Dib al-Me'zef 19. Previously, the Syrian regular forces had detained 15 youths from the northern village of Akar and sent them to compulsory military service; some of the young men were identified as Abdulhameed Howeireen, Sami al-Howeireen, Talal Mahmoud al-Howeireen, Mehna Yaser al-Howeireen, Imad Mousa al-Khesheir, Bashar Talal al-Howeireen, Ahmad Hoyan al-Hamada, Bassam Jarkas, Ali Ahmad al-Hassoun, and Sobhi Ahmad al-Hassoun. These guys have not fled from their village during the military campaign, the activist said.
The Syrian regular forces had already arrested and detained 14 civilians from the eastern countryside of Hama and the eastern countryside of Idlib at the checkpoint of Tell al-Sultan crossing border, as well as executed extrajudicially another civilian who had tried to resist the arrest. STJ had published a brief report on the incident, entitled: Idlib: 14 Civilians Arrested and another Executed by Regime Forces in the East.
[1] Most districts of the eastern countryside of Hama province were under the control of the opposition factions, whereas Aqerbat district was held by the Islamic State (ISIS), which fought battles with Syrian regular forces and their allies, but the battles ended with ISIS withdrawal from the district and the Syrian regular forces control. After that, it (the latter) launched a military campaign on the opposition factions- controlled areas on September 3, 2017 and captured them and advanced to other areas in the eastern countryside of Idlib province "east of the Railway".