The United States Commitment to Humanitarian Demining
Prepared by the Office of Humanitarian Demining Programs,
Bureau of Political-Military Affairs, U.S. Department of State,
Washington, DC, July 2000
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To Walk the Earth in Safety: The United States Commitment to Humanitarian Demining Prepared by the Office of Humanitarian Demining Programs, Bureau of Political-Military Affairs, U.S. Department of State, Washington, DC, July 2000 |
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THE MIDDLE EAST
The Landmine Problem By its own estimate, Egypt is one of the most heavily mined countries in the world. Most of these landmines are the result of conflict during World War II. The most heavily mined areas are Alexandria, El Alamein, Ras-Al-Hekma, Marsá Matruh, Sidi Barrani, Salloum, and the Sinai Peninsula. Areas near the Libyan border are also landmine-infested. United States Assistance Egypt has some demining expertise and some outdated equipment. Egypt began receiving humanitarian demining assistance in FY99 with a U.S. contribution of $615,000 for training. The Department of Defense will provide an additional $817,000 for more training in FY00.In November 1997, a U.S. Policy Assessment Team visited Egypt, followed by a Requirements Determination Site Survey conducted in May 1998 to assess Egypt's demining capabilities. The Survey assessed Egypt's capabilities in six areas: (1) mine detection and disposal; (2) mine awareness; (3) UXO disposal; (4) survey and information management; (5) victim assistance; and (6) equipment. Following these visits,the United States accepted Egypt into the U.S. Humanitarian Demining Program. In April 2000, the Government of Egypt signed a decree officially setting up a civilian-led National Demining Committee. A train-the-trainer program is involved in the initial stages of the U.S. program and focuses on providing training and demining equipment to augment Egypt's own resources. Egypt receives U.S. Foreign Military Financing funds and, in the future, it is expected that some of these funds will be redirected to support Egypt's demining requirements. The United States will continue to work with Egypt to establish a civilian led national demining program. The Landmine Problem An estimated 206,193 landmines covering an area of 101 km2 remain in Jordan today. Most of the mines date from the 1967 Arab-Israeli conflict. The majority of landmines are located in two discrete areas in the northwest region of the Jordan River Valley. One area is toward the northern end of the Valley, near Lake Tiberias, and the other is farther south, near the northern end of the Dead Sea. Additional minefields are located in the southwest region in the Araba Valley. Demining is difficult because many mines were implanted 30 years ago in areas that have suffered erosion, shifting sands, and mudslides due to flooding and severe weather. By the end of 1999, Jordan's Royal Corps of Engineers had cleared more than 80,000 landmines. United States Assistance Jordan has been receiving U.S. humanitarian demining assistance since 1996. With FY00 assistance of more than $2 million, total U.S. contributions are expected to be just under $6 million by the end of this fiscal year. U.S. funding is used to augment equipment, technical advice, and manpower assistance that Israel provides to Jordan. U.S. training has improved the capabilities of Jordan's Royal Corps of Engineers in mine detection and disposal, mine awareness, and survey and information management. The United States has provided Jordan with a computer-managed training system known as the Demining Support System. Demining operations are focused in the 300 minefields located in the Jordan River Valley. The Valley is the most fertile farmland in the country, and mines severely impede the production of food crops in a region where arable land is at a premium. U.S. funding has allowed Jordan to keep 100 men actively demining on a daily basis. As a result, more than 300 acres are now clear and 11,000 mines have been destroyed. Many of the remaining minefields are in difficult environmental areas, and demining in these areas will require using heavy equipment and new technologies. The United States has already furnished five experimental mini-mine flails and identified Jordan as a potential test bed for the Rhino, a new demining machine currently under U.S. military contract. The United States will continue to support Jordan's demining operations and work with the Government towards the country's goal of becoming mine-safe early in the century. The Landmine Problem The 1975-1990 civil war left approximately 8,800 landmines behind in Lebanese soil. Landmines exist today in cities and villages located along old demarcation lines. Although some minefields are marked and fenced off, many others remain unmarked. United States Assistance The United States has supported a demining program in Lebanon since 1998. In this fiscal year, contributions of more than $940,000 will triple from FY98 funding, bringing total U.S. contributions to more than $2.3 million. The U.S. military assisted in formally establishing an NDO and has supported its further development through training and equipment purchases. U.S. military personnel also conducted a train-the- trainer program to provide a fully indigenous company of deminers capable of sustained demining operations. In addition, funds have enabled the development of a national demining database. The U.S. military advised the Lebanese on establishing a mine information awareness program, and USAID has provided more than $600,000 to support what is now considered an effective mine awareness campaign. In partnership with the World Rehabilitation Fund (WRF), USAID's Leahy WVF supports the involvement of community-based organizations and NGOs involved in mine awareness. Lebanon's FY00 funding will enable it to purchase equipment such as mine detectors and heavy demining equipment. Funds will also support a trial mine detection dog program that will provide an innovative means of enhancing Lebanon's demining capability. The demining program, which is implemented by the Engineer Brigade of the Lebanese Armed Forces, has three clearance objectives for FY00: (1) the area around Hadeth Amroussieh, allowing reconstruction of the College of Science; (2) the Souk El Ghrab residential area; and (3) the Palm Islands, which draw tourists and vacationers. USAID's FY00 funding will assist the WRF to implement programs aimed at preventing landmine-related accidents and improving the physical, social, and economic conditions of people suffering from landmine-related injuries. The United States continues to work with Lebanon toward the goal of a qualified, trained,and equipped capacity to conduct its own humanitarian demining program. The Landmine Problem Oman has a small landmine and UXO problem. Both AT landmines and APLs were laid in the Dhofar region between 1964 and 1975 during an internal struggle with a separatist group, the communist Popular Front for the Liberation of Oman and the Gulf (PFLOG). The Royal Omani Army (ROA) and its allies (Jordan, Iran, and the United Kingdom) used landmines to support defensive positions and to interdict the movements of separatists, while the separatists used landmines to ambush ROA and allied units. The ROA states that some of the minefields were mapped, marked, and cleared at the conclusion of the conflict, but the PFLOG did not map, mark, or clear their minefields. Heavy seasonal rains and terrain and soil conditions caused several of these mines to migrate from their original positions. While landmines and UXO are still discovered in the region (including two AT mines recently found near Salalah Airport), few injuries and fatalities occur in the Dhofar region. The local populace, despite earlier ROA clearance efforts, still believes that landmines and UXO remain in the area. United States Assistance While the IWG has not formally approved Oman, it is expected to become an official member of the U.S. Humanitarian Demining Program in the near future. Accordingly, the United States has allocated $300,000 in U.S. humanitarian demining assistance for Oman in FY00. Oman will receive those funds in the current fiscal year, if a humanitarian demining program can be undertaken. The ROA possesses a highly motivated engineering unit with demining capabilities. U.S. funding will be used to develop a survey and information management capability to effectively define mined areas and to efficiently archive minefield data; to enhance the curriculum at the engineer school, which will enable it to train deminers to international standards in demining survey, marking, and clearance operations; to purchase modern detection and protective equipment to increase safety during operations; to train ROA personnel in the use of this equipment; to develop a mine awareness capability to support demining units at the regional and local levels; and to train RAO medical cadre and deminers to improve initial response medical and trauma capabilities. The Landmine Problem During the Yemeni civil war that ended in 1994, approximately 100,000 landmines were laid around Aden, Ta'izz, and the Hadramaut region. Soldiers laid these landmines in an arbitrary and haphazard fashion without markings. The mines were placed in dunes and fields and alongside roads. Only limited historical documentation showing minefield locations or the number of mines planted exists today. In addition, a small UXO problem exists in Aden. United States Assistance
Yemen first received U.S. humanitarian demining support in FY98, and total U.S. contributions to demining operations in Yemen are expected to surpass $6.7 million by the end of this fiscal year. Current U.S. funding is enabling Yemen to develop a national demining program infrastructure and to initiate a train-the-trainer program. U.S. funding has focused on education and training, Yemen's top priorities. In December 1998, the first 150 Yemeni deminers trained by U.S. forces graduated from the training program at the Humanitarian Demining Training Facility in Aden. Demining and UXO removal operations commenced in 1999 with the fielding of two U.S.-trained Yemeni demining companies, numbering some 350 personnel. Mine awareness and victim assistance teams also began educating the local populace on demining efforts, while also locating and offering assistance to people injured by landmines. Funding also supported the purchase of demining demolitions and equipment and a feasibility study of a mine-detection dog program. Some 6,000 landmines and UXO have been removed from two minefields, permitting nearly 170,000 m2 of land to be returned to use. The Dar Sa'ad compound has been renovated. While conducting training for local medical personnel, a U.S. ophthalmological surgical team recently treated more than 100 victims. With a contribution of $1.8 million in FY00, the United States intends to support the purchase of mine detectors and vehicles as part of the addition of a third demining company and personal protection equipment for deminers. As part of its commitment to the Government of Yemen, the United States will help establish a program that will assist the country in becoming mine-safe.
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