Lebanese receive lands demined with UAE's help
Lebanon-United Arab Emirates, Politics, 9/18/2002

Lebanese citizens from the villages of the south on Monday received an area of 1.900 million square meters, representing the "first shift" of lands which was cleared of landmines left by Israel after its withdrawal from South Lebanon. This was in the context of the "United Arab Emirates (UAE) solidarity project" launched in May this year to dismantle the mines.

The UAE ambassador in Lebanon Muhammad Omran said in a speech on this occasion that the first "shift included dismantling 11529 mines from an area of 1.900 million square meters for 12 border villages from the central and western sectors of south Lebanon." This came in a celebration held where the "Mukhtar " (mayor) of these villages handed over the cleared lands, held in Beit Yahoun in South Lebanon, in the presence of the personal envoy for the UN secretary general Steven De Misora, ambassador Omran and a representative for the Lebanese minister of defense Khalil Hrawi.

The second phase of the mines dismantling operations which is made at the UAE financing of 50 million dollars and sponsored by the UN, was launched on May 28, 2001. Five land mine experts were wounded as a result of their work.

The first phase was limited to monitoring the non exploded mines and bombs and defining dangerous areas.

Worthy mentioning that some 30 Lebanese civilians were killed and 100 wounded in mine explosions and bombs in south Lebanon since the Israeli withdrawal from South Lebanon in May, 2000.

Some 20 Syrian and Lebanese soldiers were wounded during the dismantling operations of the land mines.

In June, 2002, Israel handed over the UN maps that allowed defining the location of 405 thousand mines Israel had implanted before its withdrawal from south Lebanon, but the maps do not cover the majority of the mine fields.

In the spring of 2000, a preliminary estimation by the UN said that there are 130,000 unexploded land mines and bombs left by Israel after its withdrawal from an area extending over one thousand kilometer occupied by Israel for 22 years. The UN says that four years are needed to get rid off these mines.

Previous Stories:
  UAE efforts to dismantle mines from Lebanon   (5/25/2002)
  Abu Dhabi crown prince confers with Lebanese culture minister   (9/12/2001)
  Arab Gulf loans and aid cooperation to Lebanon   (5/30/2000)

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