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UN kicks off second phase of $50 million demining effort in south Lebanon

UN kicks off second phase of $50 million demining effort in south Lebanon

UN's de Mistura (centre) with officials from Lebanon and UAE
The United Nations today launched the second phase of a $50 million project which aims to remove potentially deadly landmines from south Lebanon.

The new stage of the project, called Operation Emirates Solidarity, was formally launched in Beit Yahun. Attending the ceremony were the Secretary-General's Personal Representative for Southern Lebanon, Staffan de Mistura, Lebanese Minister of Defence Khalil Hrawi, and the United Arab Emirates Minister of Information, Sheikh Abdallah Bin Zayed Al Nahyan.

According to the UN Information Centre (UNIC) in Beirut, the demining plan, which is funded by the United Arab Emirates, will serve to help Lebanon reclaim areas that are currently too perilous for cultivation. "Land that was once not only dangerous but also unusable will gradually, but surely, become effective once again," the UNIC said in announcing today's launch.

To date, nearly 4,000 out of an estimated 400,000 landmines have been removed from south Lebanon through Operation Emirates Solidarity.