Thu. Nov 14th, 2024

The United Nations Support Mission in Libya announced that incidents related to explosive ordnance caused the death or injury of 35 people, including 26 children, between April 2023 and April 2024.

The Director of the UN Mine Action Service in Libya, Fatima Zureiq, said that the past five years have seen more than 400 people injured or killed in similar incidents.

Zureiq’s remarks came during a speech at an event organized by the Libyan Mine Action Center in Tripoli, where she noted that Libya has managed to clean up about 36 percent of the hazardous land identified, but about 436 million square meters remain contaminated with explosive ordnance.

These figures not only highlight serious challenges, but also underscore the vital importance of international partnerships, she said, adding that international cooperation can strengthen the capabilities of the mine action sector, ensuring a safer future for all.

Zureiq added that the development of Libya’s mine action strategy will help the country clarify needs and priorities and identify opportunities and risks, stressing that the strategy will form a framework that guides cooperation between national and international governmental and non-state actors, to reduce risks to local communities.

In the same context, the Libyan Mine Action Center announced on May 9 plans to develop a mine action strategy in cooperation with the Geneva International Centre for Humanitarian Demining and the United Nations Support Mission in Libya represented by the Mine Action Service.

 

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