Syria shuts border crossing as Latakia wildfires spread

Shafaq News – Latakia

Syria closed the Kasab border crossing with Turkiye on Saturday after wildfires sweeping through Latakia’s coastal mountains neared the frontier, a Syrian border official said.

On X, Mazen Alloush, Director of Public Relations at the General Authority for Border and Maritime Crossings, clarified that the closure is “temporary” due to the advancing fires.

📌 تنويه لأهلنا المسافرين عبر معبر كسب الحدودينُحيطكم علماً بأنه تم إغلاق معبر كسب من الجانب التركي مؤقتاً، وذلك بسبب الحرائق المندلعة في جبال الساحل واقترابها من المنطقة الحدودية.نرجو منكم تفهّم هذا الإجراء الطارئ، ونسأل الله السلامة لأهلنا في ريف اللاذقية وأن يُطفئ الحرائق…

— مازن علوش (@mazen_alloush) July 12, 2025

Meanwhile, Syria’s Ministry of Agriculture Spokesperson Diab Sakhouri told Shafaq News that roughly 15,000 hectares of forest and farmland have been destroyed, based on initial field assessments, while "comprehensive surveys are still underway.”

The wildfires, ongoing since early July, have scorched vast areas across northern and western provinces, driven by extreme heat, arid winds, and inaccessible terrain. In some regions, landmines and unexploded ordnance left from past conflicts have further impeded access.

A central command center—overseen by the Emergency and Disaster Management Ministry—is directing more than 80 field teams, supported by military units, civil defense forces, and international partners.

Ground teams from Iraq, Jordan, and Turkiye have joined the response, while 16 aircraft from Syria, Turkiye, Jordan, and Lebanon are conducting coordinated aerial firefighting operations. Damascus has also formally appealed to the European Union for assistance.

More than 20 Iraqi firefighting teams and their crews have also entered Syrian territory to assist in battling the massive wildfires in Latakia on Saturday, a source in the Civil Defense Directorate told Shafaq News.

This report was updated to reflect new information from Iraq’s Civil Defense.