UNITED NATIONS, Sept. 4 (Xinhua) -- UN humanitarians on Friday warned of the deadly threat posed by explosive ordnance contamination in Syria.
The UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) said the contamination continues to affect not only where people live, but also how they move, work and provide for their families.
"Over the past week, a dozen explosive ordnance incidents were recorded across six Syrian governorates, killing nine people -- six of them children -- and injuring 13 others," OCHA said.
The office said a landmine hit a civilian vehicle in Deir ez-Zor governorate on Monday, killing five children and injuring three other civilians. Raqqa governorate recorded the highest number of ordnance explosions, underscoring the continued dangers of explosive remnants of war in northern Syria.
OCHA said that since Dec. 8, 2024, more than 1,400 explosive ordnance incidents have been documented across Syria, causing nearly 2,500 civilian casualties, including 880 deaths.
More than two-thirds of the incidents occurred on agricultural and grazing land, underscoring the urgent need for large-scale clearance operations to reduce the risks for farmers, herders and people traveling between villages, said OCHA.
Partners working on mine action stress that education on the risk of explosive ordnance, clearance operations and assistance for those affected are essential to protect civilians and allow them to return home safely, said the office.
