ISRAEL: The Israeli National Mine Action Authority starts clearing mine fields from around farming communities along the Jordanian border

Record ID: 397405

  • Title: ISRAEL: The Israeli National Mine Action Authority starts clearing mine fields from around farming communities along the Jordanian border
  • Date: 25th May 2012
  • Summary: ARAVA, ISRAEL (MAY 23, 2012) (REUTERS) FARMER STANDING NEXT TO MINE FIELD CLOSEUP OF WARNING SIGN FARMERS WATCHING DEMINING TEAM VARIOUS OF 'MINE WOLF' DEMINING TRACTOR DETONATING MINES NEAR FARM PEPPER PLANTS SEEN THROUGH NETTING PEPPERS ON PLANT BARI A LOCAL FARMER LOOKING AT PEPPER PLANTS (SOUNDBITE) (English) LOCAL FARMER BARI SAYING: "Every time we work on the
  • Embargoed: 9th June 2012 13:00
  • Keywords:
  • Location: Israel
  • Country: Israel
  • Topics: Defence / Military
  • Reuters ID: LVA4T629ZKM832HN4TDKNYHZ5DZ4
  • Story Text: The Israeli National Mine Action Authority (INMA) began to clear minefields along the border with Jordan this week in an area stretching from the southern tip of the Dead Sea into the Arava Desert.
    The pilot project, according to the Israeli Defence Ministry, aims to clear 240 dunams (approximately 59 acres) of farm land, in the Neot Hakikar area, of some 7000 antipersonnel mines.
    The Israeli government, in an effort to overcome what it calls a 'ticking bomb' due to the potential danger to the farmers, residents and hikers, passed a law in 2011 calling for all mines to be cleared from secure areas. The Israel National Mine Action Authority was established to oversee the clearance.
    According to local farmers, the clearance will help make them feel safer,
    "Every time we work on the land and cultivate and do all kinds of farming work, we always have it in the back of our minds that maybe at some point we might hit something (audio of explosion in background from demining). Now we can see actually how many land mines are here," said Bari, a local farmer.
    The local community cannot accept any new residents until the mines are cleared from around the area,
    "The biggest problem for us, to expand and accept new people to come and live here, is that all these mine fields are almost surrounding us and we could not open new land for farming," Bari added.
    INMA called on private firms from within Israel to complete the pilot project. Using a giant armoured tractor called a 'Mine Wolf', the antipersonnel mines are detonated by a large plough on the front of the tractor.
    "Our goal is to clean them (mines) as efficiently as possible and to release the land in order to give it back to the people," said Michael Haiman, Director of Technology and Information Management for the Israeli National Mine Action Authority.
    The project is run by the INMA, overviewed by Israel's Defence Ministry and being executed by the private Israeli company Maavarim that does the actual demining.
  • Copyright Holder: REUTERS
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