United Nations: Mine and explosives kill and hit civilian

Guterres confirmed in a message By the way The role that the United Nations plays in removing these weapons and protecting civilians.

From Afghanistan to Myanmar, from Sudan to Ukraine, Syria, the occupied Palestinian land and others, these deadly bodies are spread in rural and urban communities, killing civilians randomly and blocking the way for vital humanitarian and development efforts, according to the Secretary -General.

Even when the defender is silent, these remnants of the war remain, hiding in the fields, paths and roads, threatening the lives of innocent civilians and ways to live in communities.

Unamas at the forefront of mines removal efforts

At a press conference in New York, today, Thursday, officials of the United Nations Department of Mine Acts (Unamas) confirmed that landmines, explosive devices and explosive war remnants are still causing death and injury on a daily basis, more than a quarter of a century after the signing of an anti -individual mine -prohibition agreement, known as the Ottawa Treaty.

On Mass “The average victims reaches one person average every hour, and many children are among the victimsHe pointed out that the use of hand -made explosive devices has expanded, threatening civilians and humanitarian workers.

He pointed out that the Unamas Department coordinated in 2024 related activities for 12 administrations, agency, program, and a United Nations fund, and cleared and cleansed dangerous areas, cleansing roads to facilitate the safe movement and trade, destroy tens of thousands of mines and war waste, support the United Nations and host countries in the Arms and Ammunition Management.

He concluded his speech by saying: “We have acted as a last resort in places like Gaza when the United Nations continued to serve and implement its humanitarian mandate.”

Libya

For her part, Fatima Zureik, head of the mine -related business program in Libya, said that Libya is still suffering from the remnants of the war. She added that between May 2020 and early 2025, more than 200 incidents were recorded, which resulted in more than 300 victims, including 125 people, and many of them are civilians and children.

Zureik – who spoke via video from Tripoli – indicated that “These numbers may seem less compared to other contexts that are severely affected like Syria, but they remain very worrying in Libya, where every incident here carries a great human weight and psychological weight.”

She explained that “the threats range from anti -individuals and vehicles to unexploded ammunition, explosive devices and unsafe ammunition stores.”

Zureik confirmed that “The purification of Libya (from the remnants of war) is not just a technical task, but rather a humanitarian effort and an effort to build peace. It comes to saving lives, restoring confidence and enabling people to return to their homes.”

Nigeria

Edwin Vegman, head of the Nigerian mine -related business program, said that the war against the Boko Haram group and other non -governmental armed groups entered its sixteenth year, noting that the fighting led to pollution with explosive war remnants, including mines, explosive devices and unexploded ammunition.

Vegman – who spoke through the video – indicated that Unamas recorded in 2024 the highest number of civilian casualties due to the remnants of the warfare since 2019, when he reached 418 civilian victims in northeastern Nigeria alone. He added that these figures represent an increase of 62% compared to the numbers in 2023.

The safe future starts from here

The United Nations revives International Day for Mine Awareness and Assistance in Minefield Procedures Annually on the fourth of April. And the slogan of this year’s celebration is “The safe future starts from here.”

The Secretary -General urged all countries that have not yet believed the agreement to ban anti -personnel mines, the Convention on Staph Munitions and the Convention on Certain Traditional Weapons and have not yet implemented it completely to do so.

He also urged countries to adhere to what was stated in Future Charter In September of global obligations to restrict or prevent the use of explosive weapons in populated areas, and support all efforts to end the threat of explosive munitions.