Saudi Gazette report

RIYADH — The Saudi Project for Landmine Clearance (Masam) in Yemen has made remarkable humanitarian achievement as it has cleared as many as 163,000 mines from the Yemeni territories.

“We are all proud of the accomplishments of this humanitarian work that touched the conscience of Yemeni citizens. This was possible only because of the grace of God and then with the support of the government of Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Salman and Crown Prince Muhammad Bin Salman and this prompts us to exert more efforts to clear Yemen from the scourge of mines,” said Osama Al-Gosaibi, director general of Masam, in a statement on his Twitter account on the occasion of the second anniversary of the launching of Masam project.

Masam, with the logo of “Life without mines,” is a continuation of the Kingdom’s efforts and its active global position in humanitarian work. This humanitarian project was launched by King Salman Humanitarian Aid and Relief Center (KSRelief) in June 2018. Speaking to Al-Arabiya.net, Al-Gosaibi said that the danger lurks all the time as landmines have been planted extensively in Yemen, which have claimed lives of thousands of children, women and the elderly people, in addition to causing permanent disabilities for many others. This also inflicted heavy burden on health and treatment facilities, besides incurring economic losses for individuals and the society.

He explained that Masam project aims to clear the Yemeni areas of landmines, address the direct threats to the lives of the Yemeni people, enhance security in the Yemeni regions, help the Yemeni people address the humanitarian tragedies caused by the proliferation of mines, and establish a mechanism with the Yemeni community that enables it to take responsibility in the long-term.

Al-Gosaibi said that the phases of implementation of the project were carried out through rapid action in response to emergency situations, clearing the area of mines, training and equipping the Yemeni local teams, and thoroughly clearing the regions of Yemen in line with international standards in mine clearance. The estimated number of landmines planted randomly in Yemeni territories exceeded one million and these were mostly in the governorates of Marib, Aden, Sana’a, and Taiz. Masam has managed to remove more than 163,000 mines, unexploded ordnance and explosive devices.

Al-Gosaibi said that a total of 21 people were martyred while engaged in the mine clearance operations, and these included five foreign experts, and the rest were Yemeni team members of the Masam project. More than 10,000 have been killed in mine explosions so far, mostly women and children, as well as the elderly people, craftsmen, fishermen and farmers.

Houthi militias deliberately planted mines and explosive devices indiscriminately along roads, homes and farms of citizens, and the area of land cleared since the start of the Masam project reached 10,110,364 square meters.

He said that Masam continues its operations in the liberated Yemeni regions, and its teams have never stopped their work despite the obstacles faced by them such as the geographical barriers and the overall security situation. It is noteworthy that Masam managed to dismantle 1,433 mines, including 27 anti-personnel mines, 263 anti-tank mines, 1,132 unexploded ordnance, and 11 explosive devices during the third week of last month.