Key Takeaways
- The UNMHA recorded 20 civilian casualties from landmines in August.
- Landmines and explosive remnants caused a 122% rise in incidents compared to July.
- More than 1 million landmines have been planted in Yemen since 2014, endangering civilians.
- Children account for over 30% of the victims each month.
Sanaa: The United Nations Mission to Support the Hodeidah Agreement (UNMHA) in Yemen said Sunday that it recorded 20 civilian casualties in 13 incidents involving landmines and explosive remnants of war in Hodeidah province during August.
This marks a significant 122-percent increase from the previous month, the UNMHA said in a statement on X, the social platform formerly known as Twitter.
These incidents occurred mainly in the southern districts of al-Durayhimi, al-Garrahi, Hays, Bayt al-Faqih, and al-Hawak.
“The percentage of children among all victims remains above 30 percent almost every month,” it said.
The western coastal province of Hodeidah, mostly controlled by Houthi rebels, is heavily affected by landmines.
Yemeni demining experts estimate that more than 1 million landmines have been planted since the civil war began in late 2014, which led to the displacement of the Yemeni government from the capital Sanaa.
The UNMHA was established after a UN-brokered peace deal was reached in Stockholm, Sweden, in 2018 between the Yemeni government and Houthi rebels to prevent a full-scale assault on Hodeidah, a critical hub for commercial imports and humanitarian aid.
