ICBL denounces attacks on mine clearers in Afghanistan
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ICBL dismayed at bombing of demining organisation in Afghanistan
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ICBL denounces attacks on mine clearers in Afghanistan

(17 October 2001) The International Campaign to Ban Landmines (ICBL) is alarmed by reports that mine clearance organisations in Afghanistan are being targeted by the Taliban and condemns attacks on demining staff and offices in the strongest possible terms.

The ICBL has received detailed information from its member organisation, the Afghan Campaign to Ban Land Mines (ACBL), about a raid on an office of a mine clearance organisation in Mazar-e-Sharif yesterday.

According to a Peshawar-based spokesperson for the ACBL, armed personnel of the Taliban authorities forced their way into the demining organisation’s site office in Mazar-e-Sharif north of Kabul at 17h00 on 15 October. "They beat our guards after that they broke the locks of the doors and entered into the office," said the spokesperson who did not want to be named for security reasons. "They looted all the office equipment and left nothing behind", he added. The looted property includes vehicles, communication equipment and computers.

Staff at some of the organisation’s other offices in Afghanistan have also been threatened and ordered to "hand over all vehicles and communications systems to the Taliban otherwise they will snatch them by force", said the representative.

On 11 October, the United States started using CBU-87s it its air campaign over Afghanistan, apparently against airfields. These are cluster munitions and not, as reported by the New York Times, the CBU-89 Gator which includes antipersonnel mines. The ICBL calls for a total ban on antipersonnel mines and still seeks confirmation from the Pentagon that it has not and does not intend to use antipersonnel mines in Afghanistan. The ICBL is also concerned with the use of weapons that may have similar effects to antipersonnel mines, such as cluster munitions.

Liz Bernstein, ICBL Coordinator, +1-202-547-2667 (Washington DC)
Sue Wixley, ICBL Advocacy and Communications Officer, + 44 20 7820 9577 (London)

ICBL dismayed at bombing of demining organisation in Afghanistan
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(13 October 2001) The International Campaign to Ban Landmines (ICBL) is deeply saddened by the death of four employees of the demining organisation, Afghan Technical Consultants (ATC) and the injury of four others, following a United States (U.S.) air strike on 9 October during which an ATC office was hit. The ATC, which is supported by the European Union and is a partner of the United Nations, has worked for 12 years in the worldÂs most mine-affected country.

The ICBL notes that international humanitarian law requires that a distinction be made between civilian and military targets.

The ICBL is extremely concerned about possible use of antipersonnel landmines during military operations in Afghanistan. There have been unconfirmed press accounts of U.S. use of CBU-89 Gator mines. The ICBL asks the U.S. government to confirm or deny these reports and calls on the U.S. and all other parties to the conflict to refrain from using landmines.

Neither the U.S. nor Afghanistan has joined the 1997 Mine Ban Treaty that prohibits the use, stockpiling, production and transfer of antipersonnel mines. The U.S., along with Turkey, is the only non- signatory of the treaty among the 19 members of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization. The Taliban, which is not recognized by the UN and therefore cannot accede to the Mine Ban Treaty, imposed a ban on antipersonnel mines in a decree by their Supreme Leader in 1998. The Northern Alliance admitted to an EU mission earlier this year that they continue to use antipersonnel landmines. Both the Taliban and the Northern Alliance have accused each other of using mines.

The ICBL calls on all parties to accept the international norm rejecting any use or possession of antipersonnel mines, which has been established by the Mine Ban Treaty.

If the U.S. or other forces (non-signatory) were to use antipersonnel mines in a joint operation, this could put States Parties such as the U.K. at risk of violating the Mine Ban Treaty. The ICBL reminds States Parties that Article 1 of the treaty stipulates that they should not "assist, encourage or induce, in any way, anyone to engage in any activity prohibited to a State Party under this Convention". The ICBL therefore calls on all States Parties to the Mine Ban Treaty to insist that the United States does not use antipersonnel mines in Afghanistan or any other anti-terrorist operation.

The ICBL is concerned that many more civilians will be killed or maimed by mines as a result of the current situation in Afghanistan. The dropping of food packages could endanger civilians if they enter mined areas to collect the supplies. Mines will pose a serious danger to people fleeing the cities, into unfamiliar and possibly mine-contaminated areas (which may be unmarked) in the countryside or near border crossings and, to those that are temporarily settled and are carrying out tasks such as collecting water or firewood.

"We have already seen the devastating effects that mines can have on ordinary people in Afghanistan, and on soldiers, peacekeepers and aid workers" said ICBL Coordinator Elizabeth Bernstein, "and we are seriously worried that things will get worse".

Background

In the year 2000, there was an average of about 88 mine and UXO casualties recorded per month. It is believed that almost fifty- percent of mine victims in Afghanistan die before receiving medical attention. It is likely that mine incidents will rise as a result of the current situation, although exact casualty figures are not available as yet.

Mine action activities, including clearance, halted completely on 12 September 2001. This is a severe setback in a country where mine clearance of priority areas would probably take between seven and ten years if clearance rates had been maintained. An estimated 724 million square meters of land is known to be mine contaminated. According to the ICBLÂs Landmine Monitor Report 2001, almost half of this land (some 344 million square meters) has been prioritized for clearance because it is used for agriculture and housing, amongst other purposes. Some mined areas remain unmarked and unmapped.

For more information please go to www.icbl.org, write to media@icbl.org or contact:
Liz Bernstein, ICBL Coordinator, +1-202-547-2667
Sue Wixley, ICBL Advocacy and Communications Officer,
+ 44 20 7820 9577
Sylvie Brigot, ICBL Government Relations Officer,
+ 33 1 47 88 97 53

Click here to visit the site of the International Campaign to Ban Landmines.