The Red Cross has attempted to safely rid Syria of the huge amount of unexploded ordnance in the country [Getty]
Eleven people were injured on Friday after a missile left over from the Syria war exploded inside an abandoned military barracks in the Abbasiya area south of the city of Homs, according to local authorities.
The blast was heard across several parts of the city and initially caused alarm among residents, some of whom feared it was the result of shelling.
Homs Media Directorate said in a statement that the explosion occurred when a rocket from unexploded war remnants detonated inside a deserted military site in the area.
“The sound of the explosion, heard across the city, was caused by the detonation of a rocket from war remnants inside one of the abandoned military barracks in the area,” the directorate said in a statement.
Preliminary reports indicated that 11 people were injured, with wounds ranging from minor to moderate, while several nearby homes were also damaged by the blast.
Emergency services quickly responded to the incident, with ambulance and civil defence teams rushing to the site and transporting the injured to nearby hospitals for treatment. Authorities began securing the area and dealing with additional unexploded ordnance at the location.
Wael Ghannam, a resident of the Abbasiya neighbourhood, told The New Arab’s sister outlet Al-Araby Al-Jadeed that the blast reverberated across multiple districts of Homs.
“We were at home when we heard a huge blast followed by rising dust and smoke from the direction of the abandoned barracks,” Ghannam said.
“Many residents initially believed it was shelling before it later became clear that it was an explosion inside the military site,” he added.
Ambulances and civil defence vehicles arrived quickly, while residents gathered near the area before authorities asked them to move away for their safety.
Separate incidents involving unexploded ordnance were also reported elsewhere in Syria on Friday.
A landmine explosion killed a child and injured another in the village of Al-Jbeen in the northwestern countryside of Hama.
In another incident, a member of the Syrian army was injured when a landmine exploded in the village of Nahshba in the northern countryside of Latakia during mine-clearing operations conducted by engineering units.
Earlier this week, eight children were injured when a war remnant exploded in the village of Al-Ankawi in the western countryside of Hama.
Incidents involving unexploded ordnance remain a recurring danger in several parts of Syria, where remnants of war continue to pose a serious threat to civilians.
Syria is one of the most mine-affected countries in the world, according to experts.
Since the fall of the Assad regime in December 2024, millions of people have returned to their homes, many of which are on the former front lines, littered with potentially dangerous explosives left over from the war.
After 14 years of civil war, Syria is plagued with an epidemic of landmines, improvised explosive devices (IEDs) and unexploded ordnance.
It is still not clear how many mines there are in Syria, but one UN estimate puts the number above 300,000.
