Ahwazi: Landmines
Continue To Kill
Ahwazi Arabs employed
to clear landmines continue to face serious risk as an estimated 16 million
landmines remain from the Iran-Iraq War, which ended in 1988.
Anti-personnel mines
are claiming lives of Ahwazi Arabs, according to recent reports.
Mine explosions were
reported in Sahel Maysan, Dashte Azadegan in November [2012] as local Arabs
were employed in mine-sweeping along border areas, according to the head of the
local judiciary Hamid Azakereh.
One landmine expert
told ISNA that 29,406 hectares of farmlands are affected by landmines with an
estimated 16 million still lying in the region. In terms of landmine
prevalence, Iran is rated second worse in the world with all the mines located
in the provinces of Ilam, Khuzestan, Kermanshah, West Azerbaijan and Kurdistan.
In an interview Nader Torfi, the expert stated that two people were severely
injured and one died during landmine clearance in November.
Land mines dating from
the Iran-Iraq War occur in an large area of Al-Ahwaz, including Sahel Maysan,
Al-Howaiza, Al-Mohammerah (Khorramshahr) and Shalamcheh. Land mines have
claimed hundreds of lives and maimed scores more in the Al-Ahwaz region since
the war ended in 1988.
Poverty and
unemployment has prompted many Ahwazi Arab youth to work in the hazardous
occupation of mine clearance, without adequate protection or equipment and
putting themselves at great risk. At the same time, they are denied
opportunities in the oil, steel and petrochemicals industries, which are the
region's main economic activities.
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