Project Masam teams have located, cleared or destroyed 6,179 landmines and unexploded ordnance in the last week across Yemen.
Operating since mid-2018, Masam currently has 32 teams working in liberated areas across the country and conducts humanitarian clearance in accordance with priorities set by the Yemeni National Authority.
Teams operating out of Masam’s Marib headquarters in the governorates of Marib, Al Jawf, Shabwah, Al Hodeydah and Taiz confirmed they had removed 3,798 explosive items, including 1,834 anti-tank mines, 13 anti-personnel mines, 1,892 unexploded ordnance (UXO) and 89 improvised explosive devices (IEDs) between 08 and 14 January 2022. No demolitions were carried out during the period.
The West Coast Teams operating out of Masam’s Aden headquarters in Taiz, Hays, Al Hodeydah, Al Dalea and Aden announced they had demolished 2,381 explosive items, including 891 anti-tank mines, 21 anti-personnel mines, 1,442 UXO and 21 IEDs.
“Teams 7, 20, 21, 23, 24, 26, 27, 29 and 30 currently operating in the Al Makha, Mocha, Al Khokha and Hays area, are deployed in areas where the opposition was pushed back by the Yemen military and Coalition forces and clearing hundreds of Anti-Tank and Anti-Personnel mines, Improvised Explosive Devices and Unexploded Ordnance daily,” Deon von Landsberg, Aden Acting Operations Officer for Project Masam, said in a weekly update.
Earlier this month, Masam reached a significant landmark after clearing its 300,000th landmine and unexploded ordnance in Yemen. At the time, Managing Director and Programme Manager Ousama Algosaibi welcomed the landmark milestone for Masam and for Yemenis affected or displaced by the presence of landmines, but insisted there was still a lot of work left to do to ensure Yemen could be made safe again.
