Latest news with #MineAwarenessDay
Iraqi News
06-04-2025
- General
- Iraqi News
Iraq: Mines/ERW killed or injured 314+ children in 5 years, UN reports
Baghdad ( – In a statement released on April 4th, International Day for Mine Awareness, UNICEF emphasized that landmines and explosive remnants of war (ERW) remain a grave threat to people in Iraq, especially children. Over the previous five years, these terrible risks have killed or harmed at least 314 youngsters, according to official UN reports that the group referenced. The threat is widespread; concerning estimates suggest that more than 2,700 square kilometers of Iraqi territory are still poisoned. In addition to endangering lives on a daily basis, this pervasive contamination seriously impedes economic development, restricts access to education and essential livelihoods, and—most importantly—prevents hundreds of displaced families from safely returning to their hometowns, thereby obstructing efforts at national stability and reconstruction. Every child has the right to a safe and stable childhood, free from the threat of mines and ERW,' said Sandra Lattouf, representatives of UNICEF in Iraq. Beyond only causing physical injury, she underlined, these hidden threats deny children the opportunity to play, learn, and develop in a safe setting. UNMAS Iraq Programme Manager Pehr Lodhammar stated that pollution is still a significant barrier to progress and reaffirmed UNMAS's dedication to helping the Iraqi government and the Directorate of Mine Action (DMA) remove land for rebuilding and safe return. UNICEF and UNMAS jointly called on the Iraqi government to take immediate action to improve protection for people, particularly children, from ERW hazards in observance of Mine Awareness Day. In order to provide Iraqi children a better, more secure future, they reiterated their unwavering commitment to cooperating to speed up mine clearing operations, increase risk education initiatives, and fortify preventative measures.
Yahoo
05-04-2025
- General
- Yahoo
Ronin the rat breaks world record in Cambodia by detecting more than 100 landmines
An African landmine-sniffing rat in Cambodia has broken a world record after detecting more than 100 landmines and other explosives in the country, announced its non-profit Apopo on Friday. The giant pouched rat has been named by the Belgian charity as its most successful Mine Detection Rat (MDR) for uncovering 109 landmines and 15 items of unexploded ordnance since 2021, Apopo said in a statement. Ronin the rat has been recognised by the Guinness Book of World Records which said that the rodent's "crucial work" is making a real difference to people who have had to live with the "fear that one misstep while going about their day-to-day lives could be their last'. 'And Ronin's work is far from finished. At just five years old, he may have two years or more of detection work ahead of him, continuing to build on his already record-breaking total,' the statement by Apopo said. Ronin was deployed to Preah Vihear province in Cambodia in August 2021, Apopo said. Meet #Ronin, APOPO's record-breaking rat. He holds a Guinness World Record title for the most landmines detected by a rat. Support Ronin's a HeroRAT: #WorldRatDay #SavingLives #GuinnessWorldRecord #APOPO — APOPO (@herorats) April 4, 2025 The rodent has broken the previous record held by the African giant pouched rat Magawa who detected 71 landmines and 38 pieces of unexploded ordnance over the course of five years. The Tanzania-based Apopo non-profit has 104 rodent recruits which it calls HeroRATS. Its page of Ronin says that the avocado-loving rat is 68cm in length, weighs 1,175gm, and his personality is 'hardworking, but friendly and relaxed'. Scarred by decades of civil war, Cambodia is one of the world's most heavily landmined countries, with more than 1,000sqkm (621 sq miles) of land still contaminated. It has among the highest number of amputees per capita, with more than 40,000 people losing limbs to explosives. Apopo says its HeroRATs can search an area the size of a tennis court in 30 minutes. The same task would take a deminer with a metal detector up to four days depending on how much scrap metal was lying around. It says that the trained rats can detect the chemical compound within explosives called TNT, and they ignore scrap metal, unlike traditional methods with a metal detector.
