AMMAN, 20 September 2022 – Thousands of children across eastern and northern Syria are at risk from a rapidly spreading outbreak of cholera caused by water shortages linked to climate change and conflict and the use of contaminated water from the Euphrates River, Save the Children said today.

At least 24 people have died from the water-borne disease and several thousand suspected cases have been reported across the country as of 19 September[i]. The outbreak coincides with the return to school for many children in Syria this month, putting both children’s health and education at risk.

It is Syria’s first major outbreak of the disease in over a decade and it is spreading. The first case was confirmed in the opposition-held town of Jarablous in northern Syria yesterday. Before this, North and North West Syria had not reported any cases in this outbreak, indicating that the potential for cases in other locations remains high.

The current outbreak is understood to be caused by communities drinking infected water and food irrigated by the Euphrates River, which is experiencing historic low levels of flow mainly due to Syria’s worst drought in decades.