Project Masam has destroyed and detonated 420 mines, unexploded shells, and improvised explosive devices (IEDs) in the Ain district in Shabwah governorate, a resource-rich governorate in southern Yemen.
Shabwah became a battleground in 2015 between Houthi militias and army units supporting of Ali Abdullah Saleh, and army units and militias loyal to Abdrabbuh Mansur Hadi, the country’s president between 2012 and 2022. During the campaign, Houthis extensively and indiscriminately planted landmines across the region, including “larger than ever seen” anti-tank landmines.
The explosives that were destroyed today in the Dhahaban area of the Ain district included anti-tank and anti-personnel landmines, which were cleared during the past weeks by Project Masam demining teams operating in the districts of Bayhan, Usaylan, and Ain, in addition to the Harib district in neighbouring Marib governorate, another gas-rich province of Yemen.
In a statement, the Leader of Project Masam’s Technical Survey Team confirmed that the bulk demolition process was successful carried out, adding that the central demolition site (CDS) designated for the mine collection and detonation was chosen in accordance with international standards in a safe area away from civilian homes, groundwater wells, as well as farms and waterways, given that mines and IEDs contain substances that harm the soil and affect agricultural crops.
The demolition operation carried out by Project Masam today in the district of Ain is the 192nd operation since the project began its mission in Yemen in mid-June 2018.
