Masam’s Team 22 completes clearing operation of Al-Shaab School in Yemen’s Taiz

PHOTO-2023-02-05-22-50-33 (1)
Project Masam’s Team 22 has secured and cleared a vital school in the district of Jabal Habashi in Yemen’s Taiz governorate.
In a statement, Engineer Aref al-Qahtani, the supervisor of Project Masam’s demining teams in Taiz, said that Team 22 was able to secure and clear the Al-Shaab School of landmines and explosive devices which were planted under the rubble of the school and which constituted a direct threat to the lives of the students living in this area – particularly the village of Akkad.
Al-Qahtani indicated that Team 22 completed the securing operation after removing 32 landmines, explosive devices, and unexploded ordnance from under the debris of the school.
The engineer added that Team 22 removed the rubble and cleared the school of all debris to make sure that the securing operation was successfully completed, thus creating suitable conditions for the return of the students to resume their educational process, safely.
Al-Qahtani claimed that the Al-Shaab School is an example of the criminal practices of the Houthi militias, who target civilians, utilities and public services. In this case, the supervisor said, the school was partly destroyed by landmines and explosive devices, which had been randomly planted.
Al-Qahtani said also that the Al-Shaab School also testifies for the efforts exerted by Project Masam’s engineering teams to bring life back to normal and ensure Yemenis are safe.
Many of the owners of tractors and heavy equipment used in removing the rubble refused to go to the school site because of the seriousness of the situation there and the possibility of finding landmines under the rubble until the Masam team arrived to secure the area so that they could pursue work safely, Al-Qahtani added.
Meanwhile, Mohamed Mahyoub, a resident of the Akkad area said that the Al-Shaab School had a big number of landmines and explosive devices planted in it, which left students, parents and teachers afraid and unsafe.
Mahyoub confirmed that the school is now ready for construction or restoration works, after Project Masam certified all landmines and rubble had been removed by its dedicated teams.
Zaiem Ahmed Al-Burkani, a student at the Al-Shaab School, said that pupils had felt afraid to approach the school that they knew was extensively planted with landmines, adding that he and his fellow students began frequenting other schools located away from their homes in order to continue their education safely.
Al-Burkani added, “Now that Project Masam has demined our school, we will be able to return to it and move freely without fearing the landmines, the explosive devices, or the other war remnants.”

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