The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) has announced that a mine-clearing team affiliated with the organisation safely neutralised 25 unexploded artillery shells discovered inside the compound of a residential house in Baghlan province. According to the agency, the operation prevented a potentially fatal incident.
In a report published on Tuesday, 23 Saratan, UNDP stated that the 25 122mm artillery shells were discovered and safely disposed of in Ghulam Bai village, located in Baghlan-e-Markazi district of Baghlan province.
According to the report, the munitions were found while residents were rebuilding a collapsed section of a house. During excavation work, one of the workers struck a hard object with a pickaxe. After removing the soil, it was identified as an unexploded artillery shell buried at the site.
Following notification to local police, a UNDP mine-action team was dispatched to the area. After surveying the site, the team discovered and safely neutralised a total of 25 artillery shells.
Mine-clearing experts said the munitions likely date back to the period of the Soviet occupation of Afghanistan in the 1980s.
UNDP stated that the operation protected the lives of eight workers and 16 family members from the potential risk of an explosion and loss of life.
Afghanistan remains one of the most heavily contaminated countries in the world by landmines and unexploded ordnance due to decades of conflict. These explosive remnants of war continue to kill or injure hundreds of people every year.
Mine-action organisations report that, on average, between 40 and 50 people are killed or injured each month in Afghanistan due to landmines and other unexploded ordnance, amounting to between 600 and 700 casualties annually. According to these organisations, children account for more than 70 percent of the victims.
Writer:Salima Aryaei
