Massive Explosion Rocks Idlib, Syria, Killing Civilians and Injuring Over 100 | WATCH

A devastating explosion tore through an ammunition depot near Maarrat Misrin in the Idlib countryside on Thursday morning, killing at least five civilians and injuring over 100, including women and children, according to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights. The blast, which sent fireballs and thick smoke into the sky, was captured in footage circulated by *Al Arabiya* and *Idlib TV*, showing the scale of destruction in the rebel-held northwestern city.

The explosion was accompanied by secondary blasts. It overwhelmed Maarrat Misrin Hospital, which treated 71 wounded, per Idlib’s Health Directorate. Syrian Civil Defense teams are conducting rescue operations under hazardous conditions, with fears the death toll may rise due to ongoing explosions and critically injured victims.

The cause remains unverified, with some X posts, like @warfareanalysis, speculating an Israeli drone strike, though local sources, including *Walla*’s Itai Blumental, dismiss Israeli involvement. *Reuters* and *Mehr News* report no confirmed trigger, noting the presence of unidentified aircraft overhead during the blast. This follows a pattern of deadly incidents in Idlib, including a February 2025 explosion of unexploded ordnance in al-Nairab that killed three civilians, and a July 2 blast near al-Fu’ah caused by an ammunition depot fire, per *Hawar News*. Idlib, controlled by Hayat Tahrir al-Sham and other rebel factions, has faced frequent bombings, often blamed on Syrian regime forces, Russian airstrikes, or internal militant rivalries.

The explosion compounds Syria’s humanitarian crisis, with the UN reporting over 430 deaths from explosive remnants since December 2024, a third of them children. Idlib’s 4 million residents, many displaced, face heightened risks as the region remains a hotspot for violence, with recent Russian-Syrian airstrikes and rebel advances in Aleppo escalating tensions.