Land mine contamination in Bosnia and Herzegovina
Land mine contamination in Bosnia and Herzegovina is a serious after effect of the war in Bosnia and Herzegovina which raged from 1992 until 1995. All combatants laid land mines during the war and as a result Bosnia and Herzegovina has one of the most severe land mine problems in the world.
Land mine situation
Bosnia and Herzegovina's contamination with land mines stems exclusively from the 1992–95 war in the country. By 1996, some two million land mines and unexploded munitions littered Bosnia. By September 2013 land mines and unexploded munitions remained scattered in 28,699 locations. A total of 1.230,70 km² (2,4% of the country's territory) is mined.[1] Extensive landslides and the worst flooding since the 19th century, in May 2014, unearthed landmines prompting authorities to send in de-mining workers to locate and deactivate mines that were threatening residential areas.[2]
Land mine clearing is done by various government agencies and NGOs as well as some NATO military units. Bosnia and Herzegovina's strategic vision is to clear all land mines by the year 2019.
Land mine casualties
From 1992 through 2008 5,005 people were killed or injured by land mines or unexploded munitions. War time casualties stood at 3,339 killed and injured. Peacetime casualties, from 1996 through 2008 number 1,666 of which 486 persons were fatalities.
| Land mine casualties in Bosnia and Herzegovina 1996-2011 | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Year | Killed | Injured | Total |
| 1996 | 110 | 552 | 662 |
| 1997 | 88 | 202 | 290 |
| 1998 | 60 | 80 | 149 |
| 1999 | 38 | 57 | 95 |
| 2000 | 35 | 65 | 100 |
| 2001 | 32 | 55 | 87 |
| 2002 | 26 | 46 | 72 |
| 2003 | 23 | 31 | 54 |
| 2004 | 16 | 27 | 43 |
| 2005 | 10 | 9 | 19 |
| 2006 | 18 | 17 | 35 |
| 2007 | 8 | 22 | 30 |
| 2008 | 19 | 20 | 39 |
| 2009 | 9 | 19 | 28 |
| 2010 | 6 | 8 | 14 |
| 2011[3] | 9 | 13 | 22 |
| Totals | 507 | 1,223 | 1,739 |
External links
 |
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Landmines in Bosnia and Herzegovina. |
- Bosnia and Herzegovina Mine Action Centre(Bosnian)(English)(Serbian)(Croatian)
References
- ↑ July 2014 "Bosnia and Herzegovina mine situation September 2013" Check
|url=value (help). BH MAC. - ↑ "Landmines unearthed by shifting mud in flooded Balkans". Big News Network. Retrieved 19 May 2014.
- ↑ "Casualties Overview". The Monitor. 21 September 2012. Retrieved 11 February 2014.