Saving lives through mine risk awareness in Gaza
CISR
This headline is brought to you by the Center for International Stabilization and Recovery (CISR) which works to support resilience and recovery in global communities affected by war and conflict.
(ReliefWeb) The people of Gaza are no strangers to danger and hardship. Over the past fifteen years, this densely populated strip of land has endured four major military operations and countless outbreaks of violence and unrest. In addition, economic hardship and crippling restrictions on the movement of people can make daily life a struggle.
But another, often invisible, danger stalks this vulnerable population. Unexploded Ordnance (UXO) - unexploded bombs, landmines and other ammunition which failed to explode and still poses a lethal risk of detonation. The exact number of UXO littering Gaza is unknown but the risk to communities is real. It's alarming that in the past three years, at least one UXO-related accident has been reported each month in Gaza. Over the past years, specialist teams from the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), the Palestine Red Crescent Society (PRCS) and the Gaza Ministry of Education have been working with communities across Gaza, alerting them to the dangers of UXO and helping them stay safe. So far over 130,000 residents in Gaza have received such awareness sessions.