UK: New Year honours for RN divers

A Scottish clearance diver has been awarded an MBE in the King’s New Year Honours. Leading Seaman (Diver) Rory Cartwright-Taylor is part of the Royal Navy’s Diving & Threat Exploitation Group (DTXG), based at Faslane on Scotland’s west coast. The Read More …

Ukraine neutralized over 6,000 mines and projectiles in December

In December 2023, the demining units of the State Special Transport Service were able to neutralize 6,171 explosive devices in Ukraine. This constitutes a significant portion of the total number of mines, shells, and other explosive devices laid since the Read More …

Chinese peacekeepers in Lebanon obtain mine clearance and EOD quality certification

BEIJING, Jan. 2 — The 52 members of the 22nd Chinese Peacekeeping Troops to the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) passed the mine clearance and explosive ordnance disposal (EOD) quality assessment conducted by the United Nations Mine Action Read More …

Cambodia: CMAA review mine action success, set 2024 goals

The Cambodian Mine Action and Victim Assistance Authority (CMAA) held a two-day workshop on December 27-28 to summarise the results of its work in 2023 and outline its working direction for 2024. The conference, held in Kep province, also saw Read More …

Denmark assists Iraq in clearing landmines

The Danish government has contributed an additional $3.17 million to the United Nations Mine Action Service (UNMAS) in Iraq. The new contribution will help the Iraqi government protect civilians from the threat of explosive ordnance and support humanitarian, socioeconomic, and Read More …

Germany sends ammunition, demining equipment to Ukraine

Germany has transferred additional military aid to Ukraine, including tank ammunition, demining equipment, and anti-aircraft guns, the German government announced on Dec. 22. Germany has consistently supported Ukraine with weapons and equipment deliveries since the start of Russia’s full-scale invasion. Read More …

S. Korea Donates Demining Equipment to Ukraine

South Korea has reportedly donated demining machines to Ukraine as humanitarian assistance. According to the South Korean embassy in Ukraine on Thursday, two demining machines and ten pickup trucks were handed over to Ukraine at a ceremony in Kyiv in Read More …

Ukraine: Over 200,000 hectares of agricultural land put back into use since beginning of the year

Ukraine’s and non-governmental operators’ bomb disposal units have inspected and brought back into use over 200,000 hectares of agricultural land since the beginning of the year. “Our bomb disposal experts from Ukraine’s State Emergency Service, State Transport Special Service and Read More …

Japan to provide more than $1 million to clear landmines and unexploded ordnance in Cambodia

The Royal Government of Japan, through the Embassy in Cambodia, has agreed to provide more than $1.3 million to Cambodia for the clearance of cluster munitions, landmines, and unexploded ordnance. The grant agreement under the Grant Scheme for this Japanese Read More …

UNDP and the Netherlands forge $10 million partnership for mine action in Ukraine

In a landmark development for Ukraine’s recovery and safety, the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and the Kingdom of the Netherlands announce a new partnership, marked by acontribution of $10 million towards mine action in Ukraine. The initiative will focus Read More …

Chinese peacekeepers fulfill commitments on peacekeeping battlefield in Lebanon

The 21st Chinese peacekeeping multi-role engineering company to the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL), formed by troops from a brigade under the PLA 75th Group Army, concluded its peacekeeping mission and returned to China successfully on the early Read More …

GICHD Explosive Ordnance Risk Education in Residual Contamination Management

EORE is one of the five pillars of mine action. Over the years, a wide range of approaches to EORE have been used in mine action programmes worldwide. Much less attention, however, has been given to how to approach EORE Read More …

Japan pledges $4.5 billion more in aid for Ukraine

Prime Minister Fumio Kishida pledged $4.5 billion to Ukraine, including $1 billion in humanitarian aid to help support the war-torn country’s recovery effort in an online summit of leading industrial nations. Kishida made the announcement late Wednesday in Tokyo while Read More …

Cambodia: Siem Reap, Puok district declared landmine-free

Ly Thuch, Senior Minister and First Vice President of the Mine Authority, on behalf of Dr. Hun Manet, Prime Minister of Cambodia and Chairman of the Mine Authority, on December 5, 2023, presided over the declaration of Puok District, Siem Read More …

Iraq: Kurdish demining agency destroys 550+ mines in Penjwen

The Iraqi Kurdistan Mine Action Agency (IKMAA) announced on Tuesday that they had destroyed more than 564 mines in the Penjwen district of Sulaimani province. Jabar Mustafa Rasul, the director of the agency, revealed in a press conference that Penjwen Read More …

Ukraine to receive €1.5 million for humanitarian demining from Slovenia

Slovenia will provide €1.5 million to Ukraine for humanitarian demining. The agreement was signed by Andrii Taran, Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of Ukraine to the Republic of Slovenia, and Tanja Fajon, Slovenian Minister of Foreign and European Affairs. Following the Read More …

U.S. Philanthropist Howard G. Buffett Makes ‘Moonshot’ Investment of $33M to Clear Landmines in Ukraine

Global humanitarian landmine clearance NGO, The HALO Trust, today announced a $33 million strategic partnership with the Howard G. Buffett Foundation to tackle humanitarian demining in Ukraine. The Foundation’s investment is the single largest philanthropic donation in support of humanitarian Read More …

Japan extends further support to demining activities in Sri Lanka

Japanese Ambassador in Sri Lanka – Mr. Mizukoshi Hideaki yesterday (Nov. 27) signed the grant contracts of two demining projects under the scheme of “Grant Assistance for Grassroots Human Security Projects (GGP)”, with Ms. Cristy McLennan, Country Director of the Read More …

Japan to join multinational project to clear mines in Ukraine

Japan plans to join a multinational project to clear land mines in Ukraine, a government source said Tuesday, as the country continues to resist Russia’s invasion. Under the project being planned by the U.S.-led “Ukrainian Defense Contact Group,” Japan’s Self-Defense Read More …

Belgium helps UNMAS continue supporting operations in Iraq

The Belgian government once again contributed about $802,000 to the United Nations Mine Action Service (UNMAS) in Iraq in support of essential mine action operations. Delivering effective and sustainable explosive hazard management assistance as well as offering technical and advisory Read More …