The media office at the Directorate of Agriculture in Al-Hasakah province announced on Sunday, July 5, that the agricultural areas that have been damaged by fires since the beginning of the current season until now have reached 24,144 dunums.

The office explained in a statement that the fires consumed large areas of fields, most of which are cultivated with wheat crops, in addition to severe damage to agricultural irrigation equipment and equipment and fruit trees, stressing that these losses directly affect the agricultural sector and the livelihood of farmers, and reflect negatively on the overall production and food security in the governorate.

Map of Burnt Areas and Crops

The official statistics issued by the Directorate showed that wheat fields recorded the largest affected area with 18,909 dunums (distributed between 7,330 irrigated dunums and 11,579 dunums above), followed by barley with 2,758 dunums, and then nigella seeds with 1,713 dunums.

The fire also affected 380 dunums of lentils, 308 dunums of coriander, 25 dunums of jalban stubble, 22 dunums of beans, 15 dunums of anise, 8 dunums of vegetables, and 6 dunums of cotton, in addition to the burning of an agricultural harvester in the town of Karbawi in the countryside of Qamishli.

Broad response to emergency teams

Official figures issued by the Directorate of Information and Communication at the Ministry of Emergency and Disaster Management revealed that the total number of fires that the fire brigades and the ministry responded to during the period from May 15 to June 19 amounted to 5,226 fires in various governorates.

The directorate explained that among the fires, 1,156 fires consumed crops and agricultural fields as the harvest season entered and temperatures rose.

The Directorate pointed out that emergency teams in Al-Hasakeh were recently able to control 14 fires simultaneously at the end of last month and prevented their spread, as the damage was limited to materials.

Marketing Facilities & Expert Team

The head of the central committee in charge of following up on the wheat marketing season, Abdul Wahab al-Safar, confirmed the arrival of a specialized team of wheat sample analysis experts in the provinces of al-Hasakah, Raqqa and Deir Ezzor, with the aim of supporting the marketing of the crop and enhancing technical control. Al-Safar explained on Saturday that the team's mission is to monitor the withdrawal and analysis of samples at the receiving centers of the Syrian Grain Corporation, to ensure that wheat conforms to the standard specifications and standardizes the analysis procedures, in a way that ensures transparency and justice for farmers and protects the country's strategic stocks.