Syria’s health system is buckling under the pressure of a mass influx of returnees following the fall of the Assad government, new research suggests.

Nearly 1.4 million Syrians have returned from neighbouring countries or from internal displacement since late 2024, far outpacing the restoration of hospitals, clinics and essential services, according to a report by Relief International.

Only half of hospitals and one third of primary healthcare facilities are fully operational, while more than 15,000 doctors – roughly half of Syria’s pre-war medical workforce – left the country during the 14-year conflict.

Many Syrians have returned to areas that are relatively safe, but are unable to support basic healthcare needs, researchers found, adding that women, people with disabilities and those with chronic illnesses have been left especially vulnerable.

The findings come as President Ahmed al-Sharaa last month unveiled an ambitious $1tn (£734bn) plan to rebuild the war-ravaged country – a project experts have described as one of the most complex reconstruction efforts in modern history.

Rachel Sider, the report’s author and a humanitarian policy expert, warned that Syria’s recovery could not succeed without rebuilding the country’s shattered health system.