15 March 2018 marked the seventh anniversary of the start of the war in Syria. A conflict that had seemed to be over at the end of 2017, when the forces in the field appeared to have reached an agreement to launch a peace process. It was known that the fighting would not stop in areas still controlled by jihadists from the Islamic State. And the intention of Recep Tayyip Erdogan's Turkey to prevent the Kurdish Ygt from seizing territory in northern Syria at all costs was well known. Even so, the end of a devastating war had seemed within reach.

Seemed, because the news coming out of the nation governed by Bashar al-Assad continues to tell the story of the colossal tragedy the population is forced to endure. In the war in Syria we have witnessed bombed hospitals, the suspected use of chemical weapons, endless and deadly sieges such as that of Aleppo. And the thousands upon thousands of migrants forced to attempt escape by sea, across the Mediterranean, or overland, along the Balkan route. To understand what is happening in this part of the world, then, rather than new images or footage, the numbers can do the talking.

More than 353,000 dead, including 110,000 civilians and almost 20,000 children

According to figures provided by the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR), based in London, the confirmed death toll since the start of the conflict stands at 353,935. Just under a third are civilians: 106,390, of whom 19,811 are children and 12,513 are women; 110,000 are people who lost their lives in the ranks of the army and other militias loyal to Assad. A further 63,000 jihadists and 62,000 rebels were also killed.

UNICEF MENA - يونيسف الشرق الأوسط وشمال إفريقيا ✓ @UNICEFmena

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No end in sight to seven years of war in #Syria:

Children disabled by violence risk being forgotten and stigmatized.

#ChildrenUnderAttack
#ENabled

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According to Unicef, the number of children killed in Syria rose by 50 per cent in 2017 compared to the previous year. And 3.3 million minors are at risk across the country due to the presence of explosive devices. Dozens of schools have also been bombed, and the situation could deteriorate further in Eastern Ghouta, the rebel enclave that is the target of a large-scale military operation by the Damascus government.

The latter was accused by Amnesty International in 2017 of having adopted "extermination" practices, citing in particular the prisoners (up to 13,000) who are said to have been hanged at Saydnaya prison between 2011 and 2015. According to the SOHR, moreover, at least 60,000 people are said to have died as a result of torture or inhumane detention conditions.

11.7 million people displaced inside and outside Syria

The war in Syria has also produced around 6.1 million internally displaced people within the country itself, while 5.6 million have taken refuge in neighbouring countries, particularly Lebanon, Jordan, Iraq and Turkey, according to data from the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR). Not to mention the thousands of Syrians who managed to reach Europe.

The same UN agency stressed that among those who have remained in their homeland, "around 69 per cent are struggling to survive in conditions of extreme poverty. Moreover, 90 per cent of the population spends more than half of its income on food, and food prices are on average eight times higher than before the war. Around 5.6 million people, furthermore, live in conditions of limited security or in contexts where human rights are not guaranteed."

CNN International ✓ @cnni

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Satellite photos reveal how seven years of war in Syria have transformed its ancient cities into "hell on Earth" cnn.it/2Dvt4qI

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226 billion dollars lost, unemployment at 78%, half of healthcare and school buildings destroyed

Alongside the devastating human toll, there is the economic and social one, which is equally catastrophic. In a report from July 2017, the World Bank estimated the cost of war-related losses at 226 billion dollars (183 billion euros). The equivalent of the gross domestic product of a wealthy nation such as Finland, and four times the value of Syria's own GDP before the conflict.

Job losses, again according to the World Bank, are estimated at around 538,000: as a result, the unemployment rate has risen to 78 per cent. Furthermore, 27 per cent of the country's buildings are now destroyed. That figure rises to 50 per cent in the case of healthcare facilities (hospitals and other centres) and school buildings. A country razed to the ground, in every sense.