Medical supplies supported by WHO are offloaded at the As-Sweida Health Directorate to help replenish hospitals and primary health-care centres across the governorate. Photo credit: WHO11 November 2025, As-Sweida and Dara’a, Syrian Arab Republic - When fighting reached the edge of his village in southern Syria, Abu Laith, a father of five, knew it was time to leave. “We heard shelling near the school and saw people fleeing,” he recalls. “We packed the children, a few blankets, and drove off without knowing where we would sleep.”
Today, his family stays in a crowded shelter in Namer al-Hawa, a village in Dar’a Governorate, where dozens of displaced families have arrived in recent months. “My wife is six months pregnant and needs regular check-ups, but there’s no doctor in the centre,” he says. “The children keep coughing, and my youngest needs milk we can’t find. Every day, we wait and hope someone will visit with medicines.”
Dr Wail Ismail, Public Health Officer at WHO Syria, visits the intensive care unit of As-Sweida National Hospital to assess equipment and emergency preparedness. Photo credit: WHOSince July, hostilities in As-Sweida have triggered widespread displacement across both Dara'a and As-Sweida, forcing nearly 187,000 people to flee their homes and leaving around 820,000 exposed to heightened health risks. Shelters and host communities are under strain as families crowd into shared spaces with limited water, sanitation and access to care. Health workers report rising cases of respiratory infections, diarrhea, lice and stress-related illnesses, all made worse by shortages of medicines and staff.
“Conditions in displacement sites are worrying,” says Louay Al-Hariri, a nurse with Lamset Shifa’s mobile medical team who previously served in Dar’a. “We see children with pneumonia, diarrhea and skin infections, and pregnant women who haven’t seen a doctor in months. Our mobile team tries to reach them, provide medicines, and raise awareness about hygiene and mental health. People need to know they’re not forgotten.”
WHO supplies oxygen cylinders and refills to ensure uninterrupted services in intensive care units and operating theatres at As-Sweida National Hospital. Photo credit: WHOLocal hospitals are also struggling to keep pace. Three of As-Sweida’s four hospitals remain fully functional, and many primary health-care centres operate partially. Equipment failures and shortages of oxygen, anesthesia and fuel are frequent. Ambulance services are overstretched, with nearly half the fleet in need of repair.
Inside Namer Al-Hawa health centre, families wait for check-ups and routine vaccinations as health workers respond to growing needs amid new displacement in southern Syria. Photo credit: WHOTo help stabilize services, WHO and health authorities have stepped up deliveries of essential supplies and medicines. “We’ve provided 14.4 tons of life-saving health items since July,” says Ghazwan Abou Alshamat, WHO Logistics Assistant. “The main challenge is ensuring safe access and timely delivery despite security restrictions. For us, this work is about more than logistics. It’s about hope. Every box we deliver means a family gets the medicine they need.”
Recent deliveries included trauma and emergency kits, chronic disease medicines and oxygen cylinders for hospitals across As-Sweida. WHO also arranged oxygen-refills to keep intensive-care units and operation theatres running, supported vaccination and surveillance teams covering high-risk and hard-to-reach sites, and pre-positioned cholera kits and water-disinfection tablets in case of outbreaks.
Meanwhile, mobile medical teams continue to visit displacement sites, offering consultations, maternal-health services, and psychosocial support. “The most important thing is to stay close to people,” Louay adds. “They need to see us coming back. That gives them confidence and a sense of safety.”
As needs grow and winter approaches, health workers say keeping hospitals functional and mobile teams active will be vital. “Every kilometer we travel and every delivery we make is a small victory,” says Ghazwan. “It means the health system is still standing, and so are the people it serves.”
