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Unexploded Devices Leave Hazard for Gaza Children

Gaza's children are most likely to come into contact with unexploded ordnances left by Israeli and Palestinian forces, Mohammed Suliman writes.

A member of Hamas security forces looks at the remains of spent ammunition and unexploded bombs, fired by Israeli warplanes during Israel's 22-day offensive, in Rafah in the southern Gaza Strip January 26, 2009. Some 1,300 Palestinians, including at least 700 civilians, were killed, Palestinian medical officials said, in the offensive Israel launched in the Hamas-ruled Gaza Strip with the declared aim of ending cross-border rocket attacks. REUTERS/Ibraheem Abu Mustafa (GAZA) - RTR23WJ0
A member of Hamas security forces looks at the remains of spent ammunition and unexploded bombs, fired by Israeli warplanes during Israel's 22-day offensive, in Rafah in the southern Gaza Strip Jan. 26, 2009. — REUTERS/Ibraheem Abu Mustafa

The Landmine and Cluster Munition Monitor mentions that the Israeli-occupied Palestinian territories are "contaminated with mines and explosive remnants of war (ERW). The precise scope, scale and impact of the contamination is not known, but encompasses minefields, military-training zones and areas of confrontation where many explosive devices are left behind.”

The presence of unexploded ordnances (UXOs) continues to pose a high risk to civilians, particularly children, in the Gaza Strip. Following Israel’s 23-day assault on Gaza in 2008-2009, which resulted in more than 1,500 Palestinians killed and over 5,300 injured, the risk of UXOs became significantly higher.

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