Amid the snipers, the rubble and the misery on many Syrian streets is another ugly phenomenon: garbage. In the town of Janoub al Malaab, a district of Hama city, piles of waste give off an odour that is nearly unbearable.

 

Solid waste disposal and collection has been severely disrupted in embattled areas of Syria, more than two years into a conflict that has spurred a public health crisis. In areas held by the rebels, the state has all but stopped providing waste collection services. Combined with worsening hygiene and soaring summer heat, the uncontrolled garbage is putting about five million people at risk of disease, according to Ahmedou Bahah, manager of water and sanitation programmes for the UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF) in Syria.

 

In the embattled districts of Homs, state dustcarts have not been seen for the past 16 months, since government troops started a devastating military campaign. Instead, civil activist networks have sprung up, organizing committees tasked with cleaning the streets.

 

Local efforts are also hampered by the ongoing clashes and limited capacities.

 

In addition, to take away the refuse, they need trucks and fuel, which is expensive and not always available.

 

Coinciding with a general collapse of infrastructure as well as a severe disruption of the health system – the World Health Organization (WHO) says at least 35 percent of the country’s hospitals are out of service – the pile-up of rubbish is likely to lead to a proliferation of diseases, according to Basel al Yousfi, director of WHO’s Centre for Environmental Health Activities in the Jordanian capital Amman.