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Sierra Leone: UN mission resumes weapons destruction exercise

Sierra Leone: UN mission resumes weapons destruction exercise

The United Nations Mission in Sierra Leone (UNAMSIL) today started the second phase of its weapons destruction exercise in the capital, Freetown, destroying more than 7,600 weapons recovered by UN peacekeepers during the disarmament process.

As in the first phase of the programme, which began last May, the weapons are being destroyed by machines into small pieces that can then be converted into productive tools, including hoes, sickles, cutlasses, shovels, axes and garden implements, UNAMSIL said. The tools will be distributed to beneficiaries of the National Committee for Disarmament, Demobilization and Reintegration’s reintegration programme.

The current effort is expected to continue until 10 December.