24 September 2026: After years of conflict and displacement, millions of people in Syria still struggle to access safe water and sanitation. Fourteen years of conflict, repeated displacement, and damage to essential infrastructure have left many families without reliable water systems, proper sanitation, or safe waste disposal. When safe water is missing, the consequences are immediate: disease spreads more easily, healthcare becomes harder to provide, and daily life becomes more difficult and unsafe.
“We need water supplies to be safe, not just clean, because water that looks clean often contains bacteria and other contaminants that are harmful to people's health,” says Charlie Hardstone, MSF water and sanitation coordinator. “Access to water is a basic societal need, and access to health care and a safe water source are interconnected. It helps reduce waterborne diseases,” says Boudama Mohamed, MSF environmental health coordinator.
In hospitals and clinics, safe water and proper sanitation are essential for patient care, infection prevention and control, cleaning, and keeping medical services running. In communities, they help reduce disease risks and allow people to live with greater safety and dignity.
Returning home to damaged services
Since December 2024, around 1.7 million refugees who had fled the country and 1.9 million internally displaced people have returned to their communities. Many have gone back to places where infrastructure and essential services remain heavily damaged.
\nIn rural Aleppo, many families returned to areas where water systems were no longer functioning. Between March 2025 and June 2026, MSF implemented five water supply projects in areas covered by its mobile clinics, benefiting approximately 50,000 people. These included rehabilitating water stations, repairing wells, and installing solar power systems. One of these projects is the Anjara water station, where MSF supports two boreholes with solar-powered pumping systems to improve water access for returning communities, benefiting around 21,000 people, in collaboration with the Directorate of Water and the Ministry of Energy.
“Access to clean, safe water was a major challenge, especially as people returned to their areas of origin without any water supply. The aim of these interventions is to increase access to safe drinking water for returned residents,” says Boudama Mohamed.
In Rural Damascus, one of the areas most affected by the war, many neighbourhoods were destroyed and essential infrastructure was severely damaged. In Kefrin and Hajer Al-Aswad, MSF drilled three boreholes, installed two solar power systems, and rehabilitated a water station and a water tower. In Kefrin, the project is designed to improve water access for around 6,500 people.
Flooding in the northeast
In northeastern Syria, flooding has put even more pressure on already fragile water systems. On 25 May 2026, Syria’s Disaster and Emergency Management Authority announced the opening of the spillways of the Euphrates River dams, which continued for 13 days. Water levels rose sharply, causing flooding that affected communities and around 50 water stations in Deir ez-Zor and Raqqa governorates.
\n“In response, our teams rehabilitated four damaged water stations, including in areas that witnessed a cholera outbreak in 2022,” says Mohammad Al Hamad, MSF water and sanitation technical referent in Raqqa.
In August 2026, a second wave of flooding affected several water stations in Raqqa. MSF teams rapidly rehabilitated one water station, while work on 11 others is ongoing. In Deir ez-Zor, MSF rehabilitated Al Hari water station, improving access to safe water for around 11,000 people living in Al Hari town.
In Hassakeh, MSF teams supplied more than 3.5 million litres of water by truck to displaced people and donated a desalination plant capable of producing 800,000 litres of drinking water per day, these activities are being implemented in collaboration with the Directorate of Water and Ministry of Energy.
Waste management and public health
Safe water and sanitation are only part of what communities need to stay healthy. Waste management also helps reduce environmental contamination, improve living conditions, and lower the risks linked to waste accumulation and inadequate disposal systems.
In Raqqa, a medical waste management facility run by MSF is now operational and serves 13 primary health care centres and hospitals. Construction of a new facility is underway in Aleppo, while discussions with local authorities are ongoing to establish centralised waste management facilities in Rural Damascus, Raqqa, and Dara’a.
Daily life in displacement
For families forced from their homes, even basic daily tasks can become difficult. Khouloud lives with nine family members in a tent in a displacement camp in rural Dara’a, southern Syria. Her family fled from the neighbouring governorate of Sweida in July 2025, when clashes forced them, along with hundreds of thousands of others, to leave their home.
“Before the showers and latrines were installed, we didn’t know where to go to relieve ourselves,” says Khouloud. “Installing them made things much easier for us, especially compared to the first days of our displacement. The lighting also made it easier and safer to use the facilities at night.”
Across nearly 40 displacement sites in Dara’a, MSF teams installed 117 latrines and showers. At Nawa Hospital, which serves communities across Dara’a and nearby Quneitra, MSF supports around 70,000 litres of water per month, covering about 50 percent of the hospital’s monthly water needs.
An urgent need that continues
Humanitarian needs in Syria remain immense. According to the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, 15.6 million people still require humanitarian assistance, and millions continue to struggle to access basic services, including safe water. For them, water and sanitation are not secondary needs. They are essential for health, dignity, and survival.
-ENDS-
", "images": [ { "caption": "Anjara water station in rural Aleppo, part of MSF\u2019s support to restore and improve water supply infrastructure in areas affected by years of conflict. (copyright: MSF)", "original": "https://cdn.uc.assets.prezly.com/96cda530-cb04-4ec4-84d0-112965fd1394/", "medium": "https://cdn.uc.assets.prezly.com/96cda530-cb04-4ec4-84d0-112965fd1394/-/preview/500x500/-/format/auto/", "small": "https://cdn.uc.assets.prezly.com/96cda530-cb04-4ec4-84d0-112965fd1394/-/preview/200x200/-/format/auto/", "thumbnail": "https://cdn.uc.assets.prezly.com/96cda530-cb04-4ec4-84d0-112965fd1394/-/preview/100x100/-/format/auto/", "square": "https://cdn.uc.assets.prezly.com/96cda530-cb04-4ec4-84d0-112965fd1394/-/scale_crop/200x200/center/-/format/auto/", "squaresmall": "https://cdn.uc.assets.prezly.com/96cda530-cb04-4ec4-84d0-112965fd1394/-/scale_crop/58x58/center/-/format/auto/" }, { "caption": "Mohammed Al-Hamad, MSF technical referent for water and sanitation, and Khalil Fanash, water and sanitation technician, assess the needs of water stations affected by flooding in Raqqa Governorate. (copyright: MSF)", "original": "https://cdn.uc.assets.prezly.com/8bb81db2-86bc-48c8-a40b-08c2aa8ab9ca/", "medium": "https://cdn.uc.assets.prezly.com/8bb81db2-86bc-48c8-a40b-08c2aa8ab9ca/-/preview/500x500/-/format/auto/", "small": "https://cdn.uc.assets.prezly.com/8bb81db2-86bc-48c8-a40b-08c2aa8ab9ca/-/preview/200x200/-/format/auto/", "thumbnail": "https://cdn.uc.assets.prezly.com/8bb81db2-86bc-48c8-a40b-08c2aa8ab9ca/-/preview/100x100/-/format/auto/", "square": "https://cdn.uc.assets.prezly.com/8bb81db2-86bc-48c8-a40b-08c2aa8ab9ca/-/scale_crop/200x200/center/-/format/auto/", "squaresmall": "https://cdn.uc.assets.prezly.com/8bb81db2-86bc-48c8-a40b-08c2aa8ab9ca/-/scale_crop/58x58/center/-/format/auto/" } ], "contacts": [ { "name": "MSF UK", "company": null, "description": null, "email": "media@london.msf.org", "website": null, "address": null, "telephone": "+44 (0) 207 067 4236", "mobile": null, "twitter": null, "facebook": null, "linkedin": null, "instagram": null } ], "author": { "first_name": "David", "last_name": "Whitty" }, "format_version": 5 }