Heavy rainfall on February 8, 2026, caused the Orontes River to overflow in Syria's western Idlib province, flooding homes, commercial buildings, and refugee camps in Darkush and surrounding areas. Floodwaters inundated residential neighborhoods, forcing families from makeshift tents and prompting emergency evacuations.
Syrian authorities deployed support for affected residents in Idlib and Latakia countryside, where two children drowned in flash floods the prior day, with others rescued. The governorate opened schools and mosques as shelters, relocating hospital patients from Ain al-Bayda amid rising waters. Civil defense cleared channels in Khirbet al-Jouz, where dozens of tents were submerged across 10+ camps.
Idlib Governor Mohammad Abdel Rahman coordinated aid distribution, noting over 931 families (5,142 people) impacted in 24 camps, with 17 fully destroyed. The crisis compounds winter hardships for 2 million+ displaced near the Turkish border.
