The Ministry of Agriculture in the Interim Government of Damascus has accused what it refers to as “the remnants of the previous regime” of deliberately starting the fires that erupted in Latakia, western Syria.

Agriculture and Agrarian Reform Minister Mohammad Taha al-Ahmad stated that the fires that broke out in Latakia are a result of “sabotage acts by the remnants of the fallen regime” aimed at destabilizing the situation, disturbing citizens, and burning their properties.

The minister added to the official news agency (SANA) today, Thursday, March 6, that the ministry is working with the Interior Ministry to hold accountable “those involved in these sabotage acts” and bring them to justice.

According to al-Ahmad, the government managed, yesterday, to control 17 “deliberate” fires in the forested areas of Latakia in cooperation with the Syria Civil Defence teams and volunteers from the local community in the region.

He mentioned that the Ministry of Agriculture has taken necessary measures and precautions to minimize the damages and ensure the safety of the area and its residents, announcing the reactivation of the forest police to protect the agricultural and plant resources.

The cities of Latakia and Tartus on the Syrian coast are witnessing multiple fires in forested areas over the past two days, amidst government attempts and actions from the Civil Defence to extinguish them.

On March 5, the Syria Civil Defence reported that its teams spent more than seven continuous hours during the operations to extinguish a large forest fire that broke out in the Deir Hanna area surrounding Qardaha in the Latakia countryside.

The extinguishing operations are taking place amid significant difficulties due to the terrain and the increasing wind speed, according to the Civil Defence.

The Civil Defence was able to extinguish a fire in the Dreikish area of Tartus governorate yesterday, mentioning that its teams faced substantial challenges due to the rough terrain, the inability of firefighting vehicles to access it, and the wind speed, which exacerbated the fire’s spread.

It also responded to a fire that broke out in the al-Masaitra area and the Estamo airport in the Latakia countryside.

From Tuesday until Wednesday morning, the Civil Defence responded to 20 fires in various areas of the Latakia and Tartus countryside.

The rescue team warned that the fires pose a significant threat to the forestry resources and the destruction of vegetation cover, which will have future repercussions on the lives of Syrians.

In a statement, it noted that forest fires create direct risks to the livelihoods of local communities, especially under the current circumstances in Syria, where the vegetation cover has been severely depleted.

The Civil Defence, according to its statement, is working to limit the spread of fires and reduce their damage to civilians by increasing the readiness of firefighting teams to respond to any fire as quickly as possible, and deploying monitoring teams and advanced points near forested areas and large forests.

Since the beginning of 2025, until yesterday Wednesday, the Civil Defence has responded to 1,439 fires in various areas of Syria, which resulted in the death of 27 civilians, including eight children and six women, including 35 fires in Syrian forests and forested areas.