4th of April, International Day of Support for Mine Awareness and Clearing
More than 1 million are buried across the country… an obstacle to resolving the civil war
[ 사나(예멘)= 신화/뉴시스] Elderly people and children wait for rations at the Dharawan refugee camp in Sana’a, Yemen. Yemen, devastated by the civil war, has become a minefield with as many as 1 million mines, according to the UN Yemen Relief Team.
[서울=뉴시스] Correspondent Cha Mi-rye = On April 4 (local time), the Yemeni government marked the ‘Day of International Support for Landmine Awareness and Mine Clearing’, and the international community immediately sought help to resolve the serious landmine crisis, which is the biggest obstacle to peace and stability in Yemen. announced to provide
The Yemeni government said the threat of landmines and unexploded bombs planted across the country is still endangering Yemen as it enters its ninth year of civil war.
On this day, in the southern port city of Aden, President Amin Akili, head of the Yemeni National Mine Action Program, announced the seriousness of the landmine crisis facing Yemen and appealed for international support.
Michael Beary, head of the United Nations’ Hodeidah Accord Assistance Group (UNMHA), also said that more than 50 people were killed and wounded in the recent land mine accident at the Hodeidah port in the Red Sea this year alone.
He emphasized that if the danger of landmines is not removed urgently, younger generations, including those born in the future, will not be able to escape the curse of landmines.
The United Nations appealed to both the government and the rebels involved in the civil war in Yemen to cooperate in clearing landmines, and said that UNMHA would provide necessary technical support, all preparations, and cooperation organizations and manpower to help solve the problem. .
So far, UN aid agencies have reported that Yemen has become the world‘s largest minefield since World War II.
In particular, since the civil war began in 2014 when Houthi rebels occupied the northern region, more than 1 million mines have been laid, according to Yemeni mine-clearing experts.
The Saudi Arabian government’s Saudi Project to Clear Landmines in Yemen (Masam) announced on March 22 last year that the group had dismantled or cleared 1045 land mines in Yemen during the third week of January last year. there is a bar According to him, the Saudi project launched in Yemen in 2018 has removed a total of 383,193 mines and explosives belonging to the Houthi rebels.
Despite the ongoing removal work, the various land mines and home-made explosive devices planted by the Houthi rebels continue to pose a great threat to Yemeni civilians.
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