Khaberni - The King Salman Center for Relief and Humanitarian Works disclosed the total accumulated value of Saudi mine clearance projects in Yemen, Azerbaijan, and Iraq, which exceeded $294 million USD.
Saudi Arabia, represented by the center, continues to implement its initiatives and quality humanitarian projects aimed at protecting civilians and alleviating the suffering of those affected in a number of countries, through specialized programs that contribute to reducing risks and enhancing safety in communities.
In a related context, the center continues to implement the "Masam" project as one of the most significant specialized humanitarian projects in mine and unexploded ordnance clearance, and improvised explosive devices that were indiscriminately planted across various Yemeni provinces and resulted in humanitarian effects threatening the lives of residents and their daily livelihoods, with a total cost of $290,161,890 USD.
Since the project launched in June 2018, its field teams have extracted 551,189 mines, explosive devices, and unexploded ordnance, and cleared an area of 77,994,540 square meters of Yemeni land, as part of ongoing operations targeting the securing of villages, roads, farms, and vital facilities, and creating a safer environment for the inhabitants.
The project is carried out by 746 individuals, including field personnel, specialists, and international experts, who work under precise field conditions to address one of the most significant humanitarian challenges caused by the widespread presence of mines, which have resulted in injuries and damages affecting various community groups, including workers on the project during their humanitarian duty of clearing Yemeni lands from mines.
The center's efforts extend to Iraq through a financial support memorandum to fund mine surveying and removal projects in several Iraqi provinces with an amount of $1 million USD, and in Azerbaijan, a mine clearance project supported with $3 million USD, as part of a comprehensive humanitarian approach aimed at reducing risks and protecting civilians in affected areas.
Furthermore, the center's efforts exceed mine removal by mitigating their humanitarian impact through the Prosthetic Limbs program, which offers physical rehabilitation services for the injured and provides high-quality prosthetic limbs. This helps beneficiaries regain their mobility and reintegrate into society to lead normal lives. Approximately 92,000 individuals have benefitted from it.
For his part, Osama al-Qahtani, the director general of the Saudi Mine Clearance Project, "Masam," says, "Despite the severe danger surrounding our work, mine clearers are the toughest and most vital backbone of any effort in this field. For a mine clearer, the start of a workday could very well mean the end of his life entirely."
He added: "When we bid farewell to our families before heading to the minefields, we know for certain that we might not return to them, as the margin for error must be zero under normal working conditions so as not to join a long list of mine victims."
These efforts come at a time when mines still represent a global humanitarian challenge. According to United Nations estimates, one person is killed or injured every hour on average due to mines, unexploded ordnance, and improvised explosive devices, amidst their widespread impact on civilians, especially children.
