Land mines in Israel explained

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

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

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

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

Notes and References

  1. Web site: 2011 . Private Law No. 368 . The Knesset, Israel . rtf.
  2. News: Hashmonai . Adi . February 7, 2010 . he:בכיר בצבא: יש מאות שדות מוקשים לא מגודרים . he . Army Senior: There are Hundreds of Unfenced Minefields . . http://www.nrg.co.il/online/1/ART2/052/324.html.
  3. News: January 20, 2011 . Site of Jesus' Baptism Literally Remains a Minefield . . Associated Press .
  4. News: Pfeffer . Anshel . 2011 . IDF is Working to Clear the Minefields in the Jordan Valley and the Arava . Haaretz.
  5. Book: White, Jerry . Explosive Litter . Tirza Leibowitz . Dhyan Or . 2010 . xviii-xxv.
  6. Web site: 2002 . Bill Proposal No. 4049 . The Knesset, Israel . rtf.
  7. Web site: 2003 . Bill Proposal No. 19 . The Knesset, Israel . rtf.
  8. Web site: 2004 . Bill Proposal No. 2770 . The Knesset, Israel . rtf.
  9. News: Sobelman . Batsheva . February 8, 2010 . Israel: Land of Landmines . .
  10. News: Bronner . Ethan . May 13, 2010 . Leg Lost to Land Mine, Boy, 11, Moves Israel . .
  11. News: Lev . David . March 15, 2011 . Historic Measure to Remove Land Mines Passes Knesset Vote . Arutz Sheva .
  12. News: Rinat . Zafrir . October 17, 2012 . Clearance of land mines from Arava under way despite greens' concerns . .
  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. Web site: Clearing the Mines 2021 . 2 August 2022.

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