UN Raises Concerns Over Mine Contamination in Afghanistan

According to recent reports, Afghanistan is struggling to address the issue, with explosive remnants of war and landmines claiming thousands of victims.

“Every day, innocent lives are threatened by the remnants of war,” UNAMA warned. The organization emphasized that children account for the majority of mine victims.

The Global Protection Cluster Funding Report stated in 2023 that Afghanistan is one of the world’s most heavily contaminated countries, with two-thirds of its districts affected by explosive hazards. Over 3 million people live close to mines, improvised explosive devices, and other remnants of war, resulting in over 60 casualties per month, mostly children.

The contamination affects not only physical safety but also mental health and livelihoods. Despite progress in mine clearance since 1988, funding for mine action has drastically decreased, significantly reducing demining personnel.

Further, the 2024 review by Mine Action Review released last month said it was “unclear” whether Afghanistan would meet its commitments to ensuring mine clearance was completed. However, in April 2024, Afghanistan submitted a request for an extension of the Article 5 deadline under the Anti-Personnel Mine Ban Convention (APMBC), reaffirming its goal to finish clearing cluster munitions remnants (CMR) by 2026. This was granted on 27 November 2024.

Despite these challenges, efforts to clear Afghanistan’s minefields have made some progress. According to the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), over 13 million items of explosive remnants of war have been cleared, along with nearly 764,000 anti-personnel mines and more than 33,460 anti-vehicle mines. This has released over 3,622 square kilometers of land for productive purposes, benefiting 3,517 communities.