To mark Poland’s official withdrawal from the Ottawa Convention or the Anti-Personnel Mine Ban Treaty, Julia Głębocka, Human rights researcher for Amnesty International Poland, reflects on what the return of these indiscriminate weapons means for human rights in Europe.
Not so long ago, in 2020, the European Union was funding mine relief efforts in Lebanon and hoping to see an anti-personnel mine-free world within five years. HALO Ukraine, an EU-supported organization, had already been making tangible change, removing explosives from Ukrainian soil since 2016. In Chad, the EU-funded project PRODECO, was reintegrating anti-personnel mine victims into society through long-term medical care and rehabilitation, as well as supporting demining efforts.
Read more…
Source: Reliefweb News
Sign up for the Counter-IED Report Newsletters
The latest news and insights delivered right to your inbox
Related:
- Norway strengthens efforts against landmines and explosives globally
August 6, 2026
Norway commits NOK 580 million to humanitarian efforts aimed at protecting civilians from landmines and explosive remnants of war. The funding will also cover victim assistance and advocacy to strengthen international norms and legal instruments, including the Anti-Personnel Mine Ban Convention. “All weapons kill and maim, but in most cases, this happens while a war is ...
- Russia: Head of drone manufacturer critically injured in car bomb
August 5, 2026
The head of a leading Russian drone manufacturer has been critically injured in a car bomb near Ekaterinburg, in what appears to be the latest in a series of assassination attempts targeting figures linked to the country’s war in Ukraine. Vladimir Tkachuk, the founder of the private drone manufacturer Uraldronzavod, was rushed to intensive care on Wednesday after ...
- UK: EOD experts put through their paces in urban operations training
August 5, 2026
Soldiers from 11 Explosive Ordnance Disposal and Search Regiment Royal Logistic Corps have been sharpening their warfighting skills during an intense urban operations exercise in Catterick Garrison. 521 EOD Squadron conducted a demanding series of training serials, including blank firing and building clearance drills, designed to prepare troops for real-world urban conflict scenarios. The activity formed part of a Squadron-level ...
- Germany: Flying object hits plane at Leipzig airport as drone discovered carrying explosive device
August 5, 2026
An unidentified flying object hit a a cargo plane at a German airport on Wednesday, as the discovery of a drone carrying an explosive device caused disruption and the suspension of flights. An airport staff member discovered the drone in a secure area of the cargo flight operations near the airport’s south runway, according to a ...
- France: Explosions heard as more than 400 WWII shells found in the village affected by wildfires
August 4, 2026
Hundreds of World War II shells and munitions have been discovered in the French village of Le Porge, as residents return to the ravaged community in the wake of last month’s blazes, according to local authorities. Explosions were heard near the village in France’s Gironde region following the devastating fires, which swept through the country’s southwest. “A bomb ...
- Netherlands: Explosive found in garden of Rotterdam home
August 4, 2026
The police discovered an explosive in the garden of a home in Rotterdam on Monday evening. They cordoned off the area and called in the Ministry of Defense’s Explosive Ordinance Disposal (EOD) unit to remove the device. The police responded to the home on De Voorde, in the Feijenoord district, after receiving a report of someone with a ...
- Spain: A 17th-century mortar bomb found in La Seu d’Urgell
August 2, 2026
The seventh archaeological campaign in the Pati de les Monges of La Seu d’Urgell has brought to light a 17th-century mortar bomb, a find that forced the activation of the security protocol and the removal of the piece from the site. The projectile reinforces the hypothesis of a sudden abandonment of the space in a wartime ...
- Poland: PM Tusk says Russian missile appears to have come down in Lublin region
July 30, 2026
An object that came down in eastern Poland overnight appears to be a Russian missile, Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk said on Thursday, after authorities found a crater and scattered debris in a field following reports of an explosion. It was the latest in a series of airspace incursions in countries on NATO’s eastern flank, including Romania and ...
- Netherlands: Manhunt after car carrying explosives crashes in police chase
July 29, 2026
Police are trying to trace the occupants of a car that crashed at high speed in Amsterdam while carrying high explosives, causing dozens of homes to be evacuated. The black BMW M1 was being pursued by Dutch police after their German colleagues spotted it at the scene of a cashpoint explosion in Fürth, Hessen, around 250km ...
- Ukraine demining efforts restore farmland and create jobs in Mykolaiv region
July 29, 2026
The removal of landmines and unexploded ordnance in Ukraine is helping communities restore agricultural production, rebuild livelihoods and create new employment opportunities. In Mykolaiv Oblast, humanitarian demining efforts supported by the Danish Refugee Council (DRC) are allowing farmers to safely return to their fields while opening new career pathways in the growing mine action sector. The ...
- Ireland: Mystery surrounds identity of man killed by his own pipe bomb in Dublin hostel
July 29, 2026
A man killed when a pipe bomb he had made exploded in his room in a Dublin homeless hostel cannot be identified, two decades after his arrival in Ireland and more than two years since his death. The man, known as Igor Dmitrov, is believed to have been aged 34 when he died at the Depaul hostel ...
- Ireland: Controlled explosion carried out on grenade found in residential area in Co Galway
July 27, 2026
The army bomb disposal unit conducted a controlled explosion on a grenade in a residential area in Portumna, Co Galway this afternoon. Nearby residential properties on Abbey Street were evacuated as members of the Irish Defence Forces Explosive Ordnance Disposal Unit carried out the procedure. No injuries or damage were caused. Gardaí confirmed that the incident involved ...
- EDA: Joint Procurement – Buying military equipment together
July 27, 2026
Collaborative defence procurement allows European countries to buy military equipment together, helping them reduce costs, speed up deliveries and improve interoperability. As the European Defence Agency prepares to launch a new collaborative defence procurement centre, joint purchasing is becoming an increasingly important tool for strengthening European defence, supporting industry and ensuring armed forces can access ...
- Germany: Berlin Pride terror attack suspect shot dead by police
July 26, 2026
The suspect in what German authorities described as an “Islamist terror attack” at Berlin’s Pride celebrations was shot dead by police following a major manhunt Sunday. At least one person was killed and 29 others injured in Saturday’s vehicle-ramming and stabbing attack at Tiergarten park, near the crowded LGBTQ+ event. The attack follows several incidents in recent ...
- Ireland: Sophisticated and ready to use car bomb intercepted in County Monaghan
July 24, 2026
The Garda Commissioner has described as “extremely significant” the discovery of a bomb in a car intercepted as it was being driven across the border to Northern Ireland. The car was stopped two days ago south of Carrickmacross in Co Monaghan as part of an operation by the Special Detective Unit, which was investigating dissident republican ...