LONDON: Wildfires swept across Syria’s northwestern Latakia province this month, scorching more than 16,000 hectares of forest and farmland, damaging 45 villages, displacing thousands of civilians, and fragmenting the fragile livelihoods of rural communities. On July 2, fast-moving fires erupted in the mountainous, densely wooded northern countryside of Latakia, escalating rapidly into a full-blown emergency. Fueled by extreme temperatures, dry conditions, and strong seasonal winds, the fires surged across rugged terrain with little resistance.