Abstract Introduction What are landmines? What are unexploded ordnance? The facts.

Case study: Lebanon Solutions to minimize the problems of landmines What is the Ottawa treaty? Is it effective? Conclusion Bibliography

Landmines: The Aftermath

 Introduction Landmines and unexploded ordnance claim peoples lives as you read this very research paper. The threat which they inflict is very real to many innocent civilians worldwide. Who hasnt heard of them? How much do we really know about these evil creatures awaiting patiently their next innocent victim? Landmines are a very efficient and effective means of killing and preventing enemies to cross certain areas. They are weapons that remain a concealed threat for days, months and even 100s of years long after wars are ended and resolved. They become a threat to normal people trying to live their lives in a normal way; children playing or going to school, farmers cultivating their lands and sheppards feeding their cattle. They are the innocent who had nothing to do with the conflict in the first place who are mostly threatened by them. These people surly should have the freedom to move around safely and freely to carry out their normal life. Imagine having to guess your route to go to work or move around in your own very garden.

 What is a landmine? Landmines are devices with an explosive charge that are designed to cause damage when triggered. There are two main types of landmines: a) Anti-personnel (AP) mines aim to simply kill or injure one or more person stepping on them or within their proximity of explosion. There are two main types of anti-personnel mines: a. Blast Anti-personnel mines are laid on the surface or under the ground which when stepped on cause foot, leg or groin injuries. b. Fragmentation Anti-personnel mines which are also laid on the surface or under the ground which are usually activated by the pulling of a trip wire. When detonated, these mines splatter fragments or balls within 60 meters. Additional features to these AP mines include plastic casings which make the mines invisible to metal detectors. Anti-handling which make the mines explode with the attempt of removal; and self-destruction which makes the mines disarm. However, this feature might stil pose a threat if they fail to deactivate. b) Antitank mines aim to destroy vehicles weighing more than a 100kg. These mines are considered less harmful than AP mines, however; they do not distinguish between a tank, car, tractor or truck. http://www.army-guide.com/eng/article/article_966.html

 What is an unexploded ordnance (UXO)? Unexploded ordnance (UXO) are bombs, sub-munitions, bullets, shells, grenades and naval mines. They are ordnance which have failed to detonate during their deployment and still have the ability to maim or kill for years after. UXO come in many different shapes and sizes. Some UXO look new and others look old and rusty. Some will be in the form of bullet or bombs whiles others will be in the shape of a rock, a metal pipe, a soda can, small balls or even a toy. They can be found on the surface or buried. The most common method of their discovery is through curious children or people by people stumbling across them. Cluster Bombs: These bombs are made up of empty casings which contain hundreds of sub-munitions or duds weighing less than 20 kg. Upon their deployment, the bombs break open and release little bomblets which contaminate an area as wide as several soccer fields. Anybody within the targeted area will be very likely to get injured or killed. These weapons are not precision guided which means that their landing point could be affected by weather, wind or other factors. A certain percentage of these sub-munitions fail to detonate due to mal-function and remain dangerous on the ground similar to a landmine.

 Facts and Figures

110 million buried mines in 64 countries around the world. Mines kill or injure: 80% of victims being civilians of which, 30-40% being children under the age of 15. o 1 person every 20 minutes. o 70 people per day. o 500 people per week. o 2,000 people per month. o 26,000 people per year. Once landmines have been laid, they are completely indiscriminate in their action. The UN estimates that landmines are at least 10 times more likely to kill or injure a civilian after a conflict than an enemy during warfare. Between two and five million mines are laid annually. Mines which were laid during World War II still kill and injure people to this day. The UN has estimated that a landmine which costs $3 to purchase costs between $200 and $1,000 to clear. Landmines do not discriminate between the boots of a soldier and the sandals of a child. For every one mine that is cleared, somewhere between 20 and 50 new mines are planted Without mine fields, the land available for agriculture and livestock would increase by 11% in Bosnia, and 88% in Afghanistan There are 350 types of landmines. Iraq : In just three weeks, 13, 000 cluster bombs were used containing 1.8-2 million bomblets by the U.K. and U.S.

Case Study: Lebanon and the problem of explosive remnants of war.

Contamination and Impact
Lebanon is contaminated with mines and explosive remnants of war (ERW), especially cluster munition remnants, as a legacy of 15 years of civil conflict, which ended in 1990, and from conflicts with Israel. The JulyAugust 2006 conflict with Israel resulted in heavy new contamination in southern Lebanon.[1] According to the Landmine Impact Survey (LIS) conducted in 20022003 and revised estimates by the Lebanon Mine Action Center (LMAC), 165km of area was suspected to be contaminated with landmines. As of February 2010, 91km had been cleared or otherwise released 2 leaving 74km of suspected mined areas.[2] This is the same figure reported in 2009, as clearance efforts focused on cluster munition contaminated areas.[3] Number of suspected hazardous areas as of 31 December 2009[4]

Area of operation

No. of suspected hazardous areas 30 11 71 20 6 138

No. of booby-trap sites

No. of areas containing unexploded submunitions 303 140 6 18 0 467

Mined areas*

Minefields

Nabatiye South Lebanon Mount Lebanon Bekaa North Lebanon Total

34 83 1 1 0 119

211 172 21 113 29 546

820 212 385 41 83 1,541

* LMAC defines a mined area as an area considered dangerous due to the presence or suspected presence of mines and a minefield is an area containing mines with or without patterns. [5] The precise distinction between the two remains unclear.

Mines
The landmine problem remains primarily in the south, along the UN-delineated Blue Line between Israel and Lebanon. There are believed to be some 375,000 mines remaining, mostly antipersonnel.[6] The 2 mines have been laid up to about 3km inside Lebanese territory, covering an area of more than 7km .[7]

There are also minefields in Batroun, Chouf, Jbeil, and Jezzine; north of the Litani river; in the Bekaa valley; and across Mount Lebanon, left from various civil conflicts since the 1970s. Most of these areas were identified during the 20022003 LIS. LMAC, however, was surveying additional suspected areas that were not identified during the LIS.[8] All known mined areas are said to be marked.[9]

Cluster munition remnants

Cluster munition contamination originates primarily from Israels bombing of Lebanon in JulyAugust 2 2006, as well as from conflict in the 1980s.[10]As of June 2010, LMAC estimated that 23km of contaminated areas remained.[11] The remaining area to be cleared at the end of 2009 was approximately 23km ,[12] a significant increase 2 2 from the estimated 16km remaining at the end of 2008 and despite clearance of 4.6km in 2009. The increase is the result of re-surveying the contaminated areas, and the transmission of Israeli data in May 2009.[13] This data indicated 282 potential strike locations that had not previously been identified, of which 166 are north of, and the other 116 south of, the Litani river.[14] The projected end date for clearing all unexploded submunitions has been postponed on several occasions since 2006. The UN had originally indicated that all cluster munitions would be cleared by the end of 2007 but then revised the completion date to 2008. [15] In February 2010, LMAC said it planned to complete cluster munition clearance by 2011 and mine clearance by 2013, if sufficient funding was available.[16] The postponement of planned clearance completion dates was said by LMAC to be a result of the increased estimations of remaining contaminated areas, as well as inadequate funding.[17] A study of the economic impact of cluster munition contamination in Lebanon found that two-thirds of the area affected in 2006 was agricultural, representing close to 5% of all agricultural land in southern Lebanon. It estimated current and projected losses of agricultural production would total between US$22.6 million and $26.8 million.[18] Strike data was eventually received from the Israelis on 14 May 2009, [19]and despite its value in determining affected areas, it was criticized by LMAC for being provided too late. [20] According to the head of LMAC, if the information had been provided earlier, more lives might have been saved. [21]
2

Other explosive remnants of war

Isolated ERW can be found across the country, but the most affected area has been in the Nahr al-Bared Palestinian refugee camp in the north. [22] In May 2007, fighting between the Lebanese army and non-state armed group Fatah al-Islam in the Nahr al-Bared Palestinian refugee camp resulted in UXO contamination and the laying of booby-traps and antivehicle mines by Fatah al-Islam. There are two areas to the camp, the middle part, and the outer perimeter, called the primes. The Lebanese Armed Forces (LAF) cleared the primes, and Handicap International (HI) has been clearing the inner area since November 2008. It is planned that once clearance is completed, the area will be covered with one meter depth of soil, and homes for the displaced Palestinian refugee population will then be built.

As of February 2010, the middle of the camp was sealed off, and only the LAF, HI, rubble removing contractors, UN agencies, and the Department of Antiquities were allowed inside. All of the population of the camp has been displaced and the camp remained empty as of May 2010.[23]

Mine Action Program

Key institutions and operators

Body National Mine Action Authority Mine action center

Situation on 1 January 2010 Lebanese Mine Action Authority

LMAC and Regional Mine Action Center UN Mine Action Coordination Center

International demining operators

DanChurchAid, HI, Mines Advisory Group, Norwegian Peoples Aid, and the UN Interim Force in Lebanon (Belgian, Chinese, French, Italian, and Spanish battalions) LAF, Peace Generation Organization for Demining

National demining operators International risk education operators National risk education operators

None (national policy prohibits their involvement, see below) Al-Jarha Association for the War Wounded and Disabled in Lebanon (Al-Jarha Association), Islamic Risala Scouts Association, Lebanese Welfare Association for the Handicapped, Vision Association, Welfare Association for the Handicapped in Nabatiye, Islamic Health Council, Lebanese Association for Health and Social Care, and LAF

The Lebanese Mine Action Authority (LMAA), an interministerial body established in 1998 by the Council of Ministers, is chaired by the Minister of Defense. The LMAA is responsible for the Lebanon National Mine Action Program. LMAC, under the command of the Deputy Chief of Staff for Operations of the LAF, is the coordinating body for all mine action in Lebanon and is responsible for implementing and coordinating the mine action program.[24] Since the beginning of 2009, LMAC has been responsible for the management of mine action throughout Lebanon. The Mine Action Coordination Center South Lebanon (MACC-SL) was handed over from the

UN to the Lebanese government and became the Regional Mine Action Center (RMAC) in January 2009.[25] LMAC is supported through a UNDP Chief Technical Advisor.[26] The RMAC is based in Nabatiye. It was set up as planned in a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to support capacity-building with the UN Mine Action Coordination Center (UNMACC). The MoU formally ended on 13 December 2008, but UNMACC continued to provide equipment and six civilian employees for six months in 2009.[27]UNMACC is responsible for operational support to the UN Interim Force in Lebanons (UNIFIL) contribution to demining and battle area clearance.[28] The 20082012 national strategy (End State Strategy) provides 12 implementation guidelines and direction for associated long-term and annual plans. It assumes with sufficient funding cluster munitions can be cleared over the next few years at which time all clearance assets can return to clearing known mined areas where they had been assigned prior to 2006. [29] These plans will be revised at the end of 2010.[30] The major challenge to clearance in Lebanon is said to be sustaining funding. [31]

Land Release
LMAC, through the LAF, conducts land release or cancelation by survey only of areas identified as suspected areas in the LIS. Areas contaminated with cluster munitions are not released through survey.[32]The small amount of mined area released reflects Lebanons national priorities since 2006. In 2009, only Mines Advisory Group (MAG) reported having mine clearance capacity among its clearance teams.[33]The decline in clearing areas affected by cluster munitions is the direct consequence of decreased funding since 2007 from international donors.[34] Five-year summary of land release[35]

Year

Mined area cleared (km2) 0.07 0.08 0.49 0.13 0.11 0.88

Suspected mined area canceled or otherwise released by survey (km2) 10.46 9.31 0.00 46.61 2.51 68.89

Cluster munition contaminated area cleared (km2)

2009 2008 2007 2006 2005 Total

3.90 9.86 15.43 11.20 0.00 40.39

Survey in 2009
The LAF was solely responsible for surveys in 2009.[36] Demining NGOs and UNIFIL do not have formal survey capacity.[37] The area released in the table below refers to mined areas identified during the LIS.[38] In February 2010, LMAC trained additional LAF personnel on how to conduct technical survey so that the LAF could add three technical survey teams to its existing demining capacity.[39] Survey in 2009[40]

Operator

Area covered by non-technical survey (km2) 21.64

Area canceled by nontechnical survey (km2)

Area covered by technical survey (km2) 0

LMAC/LAF

18.57

Mine clearance in 2009

In 2009, UNIFIL conducted mine clearance to establish a visible border between Israel and Lebanon along the Blue Line. Approximately 500 points along the border have been identified and require the 2 erection of a Blue Barrel marker.[41] During clearance, UNIFIL cleared 119,538m , and found and destroyed 347 antipersonnel mines, five antivehicle mines, 268 items of UXO, and 539 unexploded submunitions.[42] Minefields north of the road have been approved for clearance, and will result in clearing approximately 2 50,000 mines covering 1.9km based on minefield data and maps made available by the Israeli Defense Forces in 2009. Clearing the roads will open the access road to the Blue Line, allow UNIFIL to patrol, and the Lebanese army to monitor and observe the Blue Line.[43] MAG was asked to support the project because UNIFIL does not have mechanical demining assets. Up to 20 villages will benefit from the clearance north of the Blue Line.[44] In 2009, MAG also continued its demining activities in the Chouf mountains in Mount Lebanon district with 2 one demining team, and cleared 15,559m .[45] Swedish Civilian Contingency Agencies (MSB), formerly 2 Swedish Rescue Services Agency, cleared 50,038m in 2009 before they closed their operations in September 2009.[46] Mine clearance in 2009[47]

Operator

Mined area cleared (m2)

No. of antipersonnel mines destroyed

No. of antivehicle mines destroyed

No. of UXO destroyed during mine clearance

MAG MSB UNIFIL Total

15,559 50,038 119,538 185,135

31 41 347 419

1 0 5 6

92 46 268 406

Clearance of cluster munition contaminated areas in 2009

Three international NGOs, UNIFIL, and two national demining operators cleared unexploded submunitions in 2009. As of February 2010, the combined capacity to clear unexploded submunitions was 27 teams, making a total of 276 personnel, compared with 114 teams in 2007.[48]Over the course of 2009, the total number of teams declined as funding was reduced, and the Swiss Foundation for Mine Action (FSD), MSB, and BACTEC Group left the country.[49] Some of the decrease in capacity was reversed when a national NGO, Peace Generation Organization for Demining (PGOD), was established in September 2009. It works in partnership with the Iranian organization, Immen Sazan Omran Pars (ISOP), and is funded by the government of Iran from a general fund for reconstruction in Lebanon.[50] PGOD started with two teams, and by February 2010 had expanded to six teams with plans to further increase its capacity in 2010. [51] LMAC accredited PGOD and tasks them for clearance across all areas of south Lebanon.[52] DanChurchAid began in 2009 with five teams, which they reduced to two by the end of the year due to lack of funding. They worked in southeast Lebanon.[53] The majority of MAGs clearance teams conducted battle area clearance in Nabatiye district.[54] Norwegian Peoples Aid (NPA) has four teams, one of which is all female.[55] Clearance of cluster munitions remnants in 2009[56]

Operator

Cluster munition contaminated area cleared (m2)

No. of unexploded submunitions destroyed 1,872 894 534 459

MAG NPA DanChurchAid MSB

1,463,376 1,272,980 701,211 211,889

BACTEC FSD ISOP/PGOD Total

134,561 61,800 50,995 3,896,812

77 9 119 3,964

Battle area clearance in 2009

HI continued clearance operations in the Nahr al-Bared Palestinian refugee camp in 2009. HI teams consist of searchers, which go through the area in 10cm sections, and then remove the rubble to another site to be crushed. As of February 2010 and since October 2008, HI had found 12,500 items, including bombs, booby-traps, mortars, grenades, and AK-47 bullets. They also found 12 antipersonnel mines on the former frontline (between Areas 0 and 1, near the north entrance of the camp), a number of booby-trapped antivehicle mines, used by Fatah al-Islam, and four large air-dropped bombs used by the LAF. The LAF provided maps to HI showing where approximately 20 bombs, of which two were 400kg and the others 250kg, had been dropped. HI has also found munition bunkers, which they handed over to the LAF for clearance. After clearance, the bunkers were buried in a landfill.[57] HI was also conducting clearance and visual searches to support archeological teams digging in Roman ruins in the camp.[58]

Community liaison
RMAC has three military and four civilian community liaison officers, who work to collect information from impacted communities, report on incidents, and coordinate with the clearance operators. [59] UNIFIL has a national Community Liaison officer.[60] NGOs also have their own community liaison capacity and work closely with the LMAC community liaison teams. [61]

Quality management
NGOs have their own internal quality assurance systems, based on the International Mine Action Standards.[62] LMAC and RMAC quality assure all areas cleared by the clearance operators, and it is reported by one operator that the system works well.[63] Quality assurance and accreditation of UNIFILs work is done jointly with the LAF in the UNMACC office in Naquora.[64]

Safety of demining personnel

MAG had two demining accidents in early 2009; in both cases a deminer was injured by the explosion of a submunition.[65]

Other Risk Reduction Measures

LMAC coordinates and supervises mine/ERW risk education (RE), which is conducted by national NGOs. A National Steering Committee on Mine Risk Education represents the various professional and political groups in the country, and the members work in the communities they represent. The Ministry of Education and the Ministry of Social Affairs are also members.[66] Oversight of RE is conducted by LMAC, which conducts weekly field visits,[67] and the Landmine Resource Center.[68] As a result of LMAC policy, only national NGOs conduct RE, although NPA provides financial support to national NGOs for RE.[69] UNICEF did not support RE programs in 2009. UNICEF discontinued its support when the emergency/recovery program launched in 2006 ended in December 2008.[70]

http://www.the-monitor.org/index.php/cp/display/region_profiles/theme/399

Lebanon, 1978, 1982 and 2006

Extensively used by Israel during the 1978 Israeli invasion of Lebanon, the 1982-2000 occupation of Lebanon and also by Hezbollah in the 2006 Lebanon War.

During the Israeli-Lebanese conflict in 1982, Israel used cluster munitions, many of them American-made, [15][16][17] on targets in southern Lebanon. Israel also used cluster bombs in the 2006 Lebanon War. Two types of cluster munitions were transferred to Israel from the U.S. The first was the CBU-58 which uses the BLU-63 bomblet. This cluster bomb is no longer in production. The second was the MK-20 [source?] Rockeye, produced by Honeywell Incorporated in Minneapolis. The CBU-58 was used by Israel in [15] Lebanon in both 1978 and 1982. The Israeli Defense company Israel Military Industriesalso manufactures the more up-to-date M-85 cluster bomb. Hezbollah fired Chinese-manufactured cluster munitions into Israel civilian targets, using 122-mm rocket launchers during the 2006 war, hitting Kiryat Motzkin, Nahariya, Karmiel, Maghar, and Safsufa. A total of 113 rockets and 4,407 submunitions were fired into Israel during the war. The rockets killed one person [18] and injured twelve. Israel dropped up to four million submunitions on Lebanese soil, one million of which remain unexploded duds, according to the United Nations Mine Action Service. Throughout the thirty-four-day conflict, the United States resupplied Israels arsenal of cluster bombs, which prompted an investigation by the State Department to examine if Israel had violated secret agreements it signed with the United States [19] governing their use. "Israel Defense Forces Chief of Staff Dan Halutz plans to appoint a major general to investigate the use of cluster bombs some of which were fired against his order during the Lebanon war. Halutz

ordered the IDF to use cluster bombs with extreme caution and not to fire them into populated areas. Nonetheless, it did so anyway, primarily using artillery batteries and the Multiple Launch System (MRLS). IDF artillery, MLRS and aircraft are thought to have delivered thousands of cluster bombs, containing a [20][21] total of some 4 million bomblets during the war." Human Rights Watch said there was evidence that Israel had used cluster bombs very close to civilian areas and described them as "unacceptably inaccurate and unreliable weapons when used around [22] civilians" and that "they should never be used in populated areas." Human Rights Watch has accused [23] Israel of using cluster munitions in an attack on Bilda, a Lebanese village, on 19 July which killed 1 civilian and injured 12, including seven children. The Israeli "army defended ... the use of cluster munitions in its offensive with Lebanon, saying that using such munitions was 'legal underinternational [24] law' and the army employed them 'in accordance with international standards.'" Foreign Ministry Spokesman Mark Regev added, "[I]f NATO countries stock these weapons and have used them in recent [25] conflicts in Yugoslavia, Afghanistan and Iraq the world has no reason to point a finger at Israel."

http://aec.army.mil/usaec/technology/uxo00.html http://www.icrc.org/eng/resources/documents/legal-fact-sheet/cluster-munitions-factsheet230710.htm http://www.unicef.org/sowc96pk/hidekill.htm