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Land mines in Israel

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Landmines in Israel have been a problem since the 1950s and 1960s. Campaigns to clear the landmines, led by a coalition of civil-society organizations, mine-affected communities and land mine survivors, operated from 2009 to 2011, until the Knesset passed the Minefield Clearance Act.[1] According to this law, the Israel Mine Action Authority was established and began clearing minefields in 2012.

History

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Around 1.2 million[2] land mines laid during the 1950s and 1960s contaminate a combined area of 50,000 acres in the Golan Heights, in the Arava Valley and along the Jordan River.[3] This includes more than 300,000 land mines contaminating 5,000 acres of agricultural and residential land in the West Bank, with unexploded ordnance further making sites inaccessible.[4] A State Comptroller audit conducted in the late 1990s found that hundreds of minefields no longer contributed to Israel's security and that no government agency had presented a plan to clear them.[5]

Legislation

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Three unsuccessful attempts to offer a legal solution to the land mine problem were proposed in the early 2000s.[6][7][8] In 2009, Jerry White, an American who survived a mine incident in the Golan Heights, together with the newly formed Mine-Free Israel coalition, led by activist Dhyan Or,[9] drafted a call to action and a legal framework for humanitarian demining in Israel. In February 2010, 11-year-old Israeli boy Daniel Yuval lost his leg to land mine while walking in the snow in the Golan Heights. Following this incident, Yuval joined the Mine-Free Israel and petitioned the Prime Minister and Members of Knesset to support the draft bill.[10] The campaign secured the support of 73 Members of Knesset, as well as the Government, and became a law on March 14, 2011.[11]

Demining

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Following the adoption of the bill, the State of Israel established its National Mine Action Authority, which began work in the Arava Valley in 2012.[12] In 2013, demining activity continued in the Arava and spread to the West Bank and the Golan Heights.[13]

According to the 2021 Mine Action Review, there were 262,278 mi2 mined areas in the West Bank excluding the Jordan Valley. From 2016 to 2020, a total of 113,380 mi2 were cleared, but Israel is not projected to meet the Article 5 target deadline of June 1, 2028.[14]

References

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  1. ^ "Private Law No. 368" (rtf). The Knesset, Israel. 2011.
  2. ^ Hashmonai, Adi (February 7, 2010). בכיר בצבא: יש מאות שדות מוקשים לא מגודרים [Army Senior: There are Hundreds of Unfenced Minefields] (in Hebrew). nrg Maariv.
  3. ^ "Site of Jesus' Baptism Literally Remains a Minefield". Fox News. Associated Press. January 20, 2011.
  4. ^ Pfeffer, Anshel (2011). "IDF is Working to Clear the Minefields in the Jordan Valley and the Arava". Haaretz.
  5. ^ White, Jerry; Tirza Leibowitz; Dhyan Or (2010). Explosive Litter. pp. xviii–xxv.
  6. ^ "Bill Proposal No. 4049" (rtf). The Knesset, Israel. 2002.
  7. ^ "Bill Proposal No. 19" (rtf). The Knesset, Israel. 2003.
  8. ^ "Bill Proposal No. 2770" (rtf). The Knesset, Israel. 2004.
  9. ^ Sobelman, Batsheva (February 8, 2010). "Israel: Land of Landmines". Los Angeles Times.
  10. ^ Bronner, Ethan (May 13, 2010). "Leg Lost to Land Mine, Boy, 11, Moves Israel". The New York Times.
  11. ^ Lev, David (March 15, 2011). "Historic Measure to Remove Land Mines Passes Knesset Vote". Arutz Sheva.
  12. ^ Rinat, Zafrir (October 17, 2012). "Clearance of land mines from Arava under way despite greens' concerns". Haaretz.
  13. ^ INMAA, Israel National Mine Action Authority, official website, accessed October 9, 2013: https://web.archive.org/web/20130927204124/http://www.inmaa.org.il/
  14. ^ "Clearing the Mines 2021" (PDF). Retrieved 2 August 2022.
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