Handicap International is one of the leading organisations working on disability worldwide. We publish a range of reports, factsheets and briefing notes related to disability in the areas of physical rehabilitation, emergencies, explosive weapons, health, inclusion and rights. A selection of our most recent reports are available below.
The use of explosive weapons in populated areas and forced displacement: perspectives from Syrian refugees.
September 2016 | Syria
Handicap International’s report ‘Qasef: Escaping the bombing’ identifies the mass use of explosive weapons in populated areas as an overriding factor in the displacement of Syrian population. Indiscriminate bombing and shelling have created one of the worst humanitarian crises since the Second World War. More than 10.9 million Syrians – over half of the country’s population - have had to flee their home, with 6.1 million being internally displaced and 4.8 million seeking refuge in neighbouring countries.
Download the report (pdf, 4.13 MB)
A focus on the persons injured by explosive weapons.
May 2016 | Syria
This paper is designed as a follow-up to the previous publication “A focus on the impact of explosive weapons” (2014). It provides information on a wider sample of beneficiaries, over a longer period of time, allowing us to better assess the situation. It focuses on the injuries and psychological trauma observed by Handicap International while working with internally displaced persons in Syria and Syrian refugees in the neighbouring countries, based on the initial assessment of their situation. It draws attention to the short and long term consequences that victims of explosive weapons face, in a context of limited immediate and sustainable care.
Download the report (pdf, 3.21 MB)
Views from affected people and field organisations
July 2015 | International
This report is based on the results of a global consultation carried out in 2015 as a contribution to the World Humanitarian Summit. It is intended to better identify the changes needed for a disability-inclusive humanitarian response. While most humanitarian actors pledge to target vulnerable persons in crisis time, few of them are putting in place specific mechanisms and procedures to effectively reach out to, and take into account, persons with disabilities in their programs. This ambition requires changes in policies and practices within the humanitarian community as a whole.
Download the report (pdf, 3.5 MB)
June 2015 | Syria
Handicap International mine action experts assessed the beleaguered city of Kobani, Syria in April 2015 and discovered an alarming level of unexploded ordnance contamination. Four months of combat, including ground fighting and coalition air strikes, left an average of 10 munitions per square metre in the city centre and destroyed nearly 80% of buildings, according to this Handicap International brief.
Download the report (pdf, 719 KB)
May 2015 | Syria
This report warns of the high degree of weapons contamination in Syria that is putting the lives of 5.1 million Syrians, including 2 million children, at high risk of death, injury, and disability. Based on an analysis of 77,645 incidents linked to weapons collected between December 2012 and March 2015, the study found that explosive weapons are the most commonly used weapons in the Syria conflict. Indeed, explosive weapons were present in 83.73% of reported incidents. Civilians are in grave danger, as 75% of these incidents are taking place in populated areas.
Download the report (pdf, 2.48 MB)
2015 | Worldwide
A series of advocacy briefings on thematic areas of Handicap International's work. Using priorities outlined in the United Nations Convention on the Rights of People with Disabilities, the goals within the New Agenda for Sustainable Development, and our own expertise as our guide, these briefing papers provide information and guidance on key priority areas for disability inclusion. The messages and recommendations are for anyone working in a development and humanitarian context and provide a starting point for inclusion interventions.
A study of awareness of Explosive Remnants of War among the population of Gaza.
January 2015 | Gaza
This baseline assessment was undertaken by Handicap International in October 2014 in all five governorates of Gaza. The focus of the survey was to collect baseline data related to the knowledge, attitudes, and practices regarding Explosive Remnants of War contamination in communities impacted by the recent conflict.
Download the report (pdf, 2.16 MB)
April 2014 | Lebanon and Jordan
The Syrian crisis has generated the largest refugee movement since the Rwandan genocide and is described as the defining refugee crisis of our era. Within this refugee population, older, disabled and injured refugees face specific challenges that contribute to their vulnerability. Yet, studies of humanitarian programming show that these same groups are often neglected in the assessment, data collection, design and delivery of responses.
In October and November 2013, Handicap International and HelpAge International undertook a research project to highlight the number and needs of Syrian refugees in Jordan and Lebanon living with impairment, injury and chronic disease. The findings present a new and critical perspective on the position of the identified groups and the risks and vulnerabilities they face, with far-reaching consequences for the way current humanitarian responses are designed and delivered.
Download the report (pdf, 1.9 MB)
Causes and types of injuries encountered by Handicap International while working with Internally Displaced Persons in Syria.
January 2014 | Syria
This paper provides a snapshot of the types of injuries caused by explosive weapons, such as those encountered by Handicap International while working with Internally Displaced Persons in Syria. Since the onset of the crisis, Handicap International has worked to assist vulnerable people in Syria and neighbouring countries by providing physical rehabilitation, psychosocial support, weapons risk education as well as through the provision of assistive and mobility devices, including prosthetics and orthotics.
Download the report (pdf, 799 KB)
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