Qalamoun: a region rebuilding

Qalamoun is a highland region of limestone ridges rising west of the Damascus–Homs corridor and falling east towards open steppe. Orchards, vineyards and cultivated plots follow the water that the slopes and springs allow; beyond them the ground turns dry and stony. The main road runs north to south through the region, and mountain routes lead west towards Lebanon.

The region's main towns sit along or just off that corridor, within short distances of one another. Each functions as a local centre for administration, markets, schooling and municipal services, and each is surrounded by smaller settlements that depend on it.

Around these four towns lie a number of smaller villages and hamlets, on the approaches to the corridor, along the side valleys and among the orchard terraces. They are not named individually here. Their populations are smaller and more dispersed, and they rely on the nearby towns for equipment, waste collection, water infrastructure and technical staff.

This pattern — four service centres, a shared road and a wide scatter of dependent settlements — is the practical reason the Foundation works at regional rather than single-town scale.

Qalamoun’s position along the principal route between Damascus and Homs, and beside mountain routes leading towards Lebanon, gave the region strategic importance during the conflict. Several towns experienced fighting, shelling, population movement and prolonged interruption to transport, commerce and public services, particularly during the military campaigns of 2013 and 2014.

This history should not define Qalamoun’s future. It does, however, explain why buildings, service networks, municipal equipment, local economies and household security remain under pressure long after the most intense fighting ended.

International sources document particular episodes rather than a complete regional account. UNHCR estimated that approximately 18,000 Syrians crossed into Lebanon through Arsal between 15 and 22 November 2013. Refugees reported fleeing shelling in Qara, Al-Sahel, Deir Atiyeh and An-Nabk.

A United Nations communication issued in January 2014 reported that intense fighting had restricted humanitarian access in Qalamoun and that World Food Programme rations had been dispatched in December 2013 to address food shortages affecting an estimated 75,000 people in Deir Atiyeh and An-Nabk.

Qalamoun’s experience formed part of a much wider national tragedy. The Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights estimated that 306,887 civilians were killed as a direct result of conflict-related operations in Syria between 1 March 2011 and 31 March 2021. At the end of 2025, UNHCR reported that 4.9 million Syrians remained refugees outside their country.

The visible destruction of housing and public buildings is only one part of the conflict’s legacy. Water networks, wastewater systems, waste collection, roads, electricity, municipal vehicles, workshops and public spaces were also damaged or weakened by prolonged disruption, economic contraction and inadequate investment.

When waste is not collected consistently, it accumulates at settlement edges, along roads and in uncontrolled dumping areas. Open burning releases smoke into surrounding neighbourhoods. Poorly protected disposal sites place land and groundwater at risk. Damaged water and sewer networks increase leakage, service interruptions and public-health pressure. Ageing municipal equipment makes even routine work difficult and costly.

These are not secondary concerns. They influence disease prevention, household safety, the condition of neighbourhoods, agricultural land and whether returning families can rebuild ordinary life.

The World Bank estimated the cost of reconstructing Syria’s damaged physical assets at US$216 billion. It identified infrastructure as the largest category of direct physical damage and Rif Dimashq as one of the governorates most severely affected.

In February 2026, UNICEF reported that 14.4 million people across Syria required urgent water, sanitation and hygiene assistance. The scale is national, but the practical work takes place locally: repairing a network, restoring a pump, maintaining a vehicle, organising a collection route, preventing open dumping and protecting a water source.

Reliable services create the conditions for wider recovery. They protect health, support schools and businesses, reduce pressure on households and make it possible for communities to plan beyond immediate survival.

Syria’s public institutions are rebuilding administration and essential services while facing needs across the entire country. The Qalamoun Foundation for Development and Environment concentrates on the requirements of this region.

The Foundation develops practical initiatives around shared environmental and development priorities. It works to bring together local knowledge, Syrian technical expertise, public institutions, implementation capacity and potential sources of support.

The Foundation does not seek to replace public authorities. Its contribution is to maintain a sustained regional focus, prepare workable initiatives and support the cooperation required when environmental and infrastructure challenges extend beyond a single town.