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The Houthis’ landmines transformed huge areas of Yemenis’ farms on the western coast into death fields that are taking innocent lives, and also prevented the farmers from reclaiming their lands and reap their fruits, or returning to the regions they were displaced from.
During 5 years of Houthis’ violation of human rights, the international and humanitarian organizations documented the fall of thousands of civilians victims to the mines.
On the western coast, Masam’s media office documented hundreds of mines victims, some of them lost their limbs and became disabled and persons with special needs.
The tragedy of Khawla
Khawla Khbish lost her mother and one of her eyes after she was exposed to an explosion of a mines on the western coast during her return from the forced displacement that lasted for months.
In an exclusive interview with Masam’s media office, Khawla says: “We were forced to flee for fear of war, after staying at home became like a suicide because of the Houthis’ heavy shelling in the region. And after months of suffering our village was liberated, so we decided to return to our homes, unaware that the Houthis left a death machine behind them that was lurking and awaiting for the locals”.
The mines changed the path of Khawla’s life after they killed her mother, and shrapnel ripped Khawla’s weak body and caused her burns of the first degree. They also injured her little brother who is less than 10 year old.
Thorny roads
The civilians are going through a painful reality and a very sad humanitarian situation in the hills of Tihamah, which led Masam project to send 16 engineering teams that work in 10 directorates on the western coast, to secure civilian lives, and enable them to return to their homes to reclaim their lands which the Houthis’ mines turned into death fields that take the lives of innocents.
In Al Khokha directorate, Masam project works for the second year in a row with 3 engineering teams that were able to secure many residential areas, agricultural lands, and were also able to diminish the number of victims dramatically.
The achievement made by Masam’s team 26 which works in Al Khokha directorate is the best example of the big humanitarian role that Masam project is playing in Yemen.
In an exclusive interview with Masam’s media office, the member of Masam’s team 26 engineer Mohammad Aalwan confirmed that the team has been able since it started its mission to clear 13 landmines starting from Al Moushi to Al Haima in Al Khokha directorate.
Engineer Mohammad Aalwan said: “The team was able to remove 2022 mines, explosive devices and unexploded ordnance”, noting that the field that his team is working in right now is an open agricultural area that includes a lot of farms, which the Houthis filled heavily and randomly with mines.
Aalwan added that the region where his team is working to secure right now witnessed many explosions that caused the killing of more than 13 civilians, most of them women and children.
He noted that all the removed mines were planted by the Houthis randomly in the citizen’s farms, sub-roads and civilian residential areas.
The member of team 26 reiterated that his team was able to help a lot of farmers through enabling them to return again to their farms after they were fully cleared of mines.
He confirmed that his team will continue it humanitarian mission until Al Khokha region in particular, and the western coast in general are safe from mines that were planted to kill and mime civilian, and prevent them from returning to their homes and farms.
Engineer Mohammad Aalwan praised the huge support that Masam project provides for his team in everything they need to facilitate their humanitarian mission and save civilians from the mines danger which was planted by the militias of death and enemies of humanity underground.