Two years on from war in Lebanon, progress on cluster munitions – UN agency

Two years after the end of fighting in Lebanon between Hizbollah and the Israeli Defence Forces (IDF), the threat of cluster munitions has been reduced but not eliminated in the south of the country, according to a United Nations agency in charge of clearing mines from the area.

The UN Mine Action Coordination Centre of South Lebanon says that during the 34-day conflict in 2006 the area was blanketed by cluster munitions. An estimated 40 square kilometers of land became contaminated with hundreds of thousands of unexploded cluster munitions, which have so far killed 20 people and maimed 194 others.

Commenting on the village of Kafer Sir, one of dozens affected in the area, the head of the Centre, Christopher Clark, said, “This whole village was covered with unexploded cluster munitions. They were on people’s rooftops, hanging from trees, even in playgrounds.

“We’ve managed to clean up about half of the known cluster munition strike sites in this village. We hope to have the whole village completely cleared by the end of the year,” he added.

To date, cluster munitions have been cleared from the surface of about half of South Lebanon’s known contaminated land. About 150,000 munitions have been found and destroyed.

“I’m optimistic about the situation,” Mr. Clark stressed. “Our goal is to address the worst of the problem by the end of this year. I don’t want even one more civilian to have to fall victim to these horrible weapons. We’ll do everything we can to make the area safe and let people resume their normal lives.”

Since clearance operations and measures to educate the public about the dangers of cluster munitions began two years ago, the civilian accident rate has dropped from about 57 a month in 2006 to about two a month today.

“There’s been a huge human toll, but the economic toll has also been very high. Most people in South Lebanon earn a living from agriculture. People can’t farm when the land is full of cluster munitions,” Mr. Clark said.

With support from the UN Trust Fund for Human Security, the Centre has provided livestock to the most vulnerable individuals and families in the village of Kafer Sir.

The Centre coordinates the operations of about 950 clearance personnel as well as mine action personnel of the UN Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) and of the Lebanese Army.

In a related development today UNIFIL’s force commander Major General Claudio Graziano told reporters in New York today that the mission had been successful in carrying out its mandate in maintaining the ceasefire established in 2006. He stressed that the mission’s presence was vital in ensuring stability in the area.