The Syrian Observatory For Human Rights (SOHR) has reported the unfortunate death of 7 civilians across the Syrian countryside. The incidents are attributed to three separate landmine explosions. The first, took place in the village of Harasta al-Qantara, within the al-Nasabiyah district. Eyewitnesses told the SOHR that while two men were grazing their cattle, an old land mine unexpectedly detonated, injuring one and killing the other.
Similarly, in Wadi Maliha al-Atash, eastern Daana, a young man was driving in his car alongside his three young daughters. Suddenly, their vehicle drove over a landmine instantly causing the car to explode. The third explosion occurred in an abandoned house in the Aftarees area, eastern Ghouta. The explosion, triggered by an ancient but still active landmine inside of the building, killed two children who were reported to have been playing within the house.
These deaths add to an already horrifying figure of 527 killed due to landmine and IED detonations in Syria dating back to just January of 2019 . The SOHR has documented that out of the 527 casualties, 77 have been women and 168 have unfortunately been children. The explosion that killed the two children in Aftarees is just one of hundreds of examples of detonations across Syria. The issue at hand is that there are far too many landmines in areas where children should be free to roam unprotected and without supervision.
Activists from the SOHR are asking the international community and the U.N to provide resources in order to search and deactivate these bombs. Amidst the Syrian crisis, not only are people going hungry, and murdered by armed groups but now the causality number due to landmine explosions is reaching an all time high.
To learn more, please read:
https://www.syriahr.com/en/215781/
Author: Sergio Gomez; Editor:Xavier Atkins
