Azerbaijan's demining chief says civilians make up majority of mine victims

Baku hosted a press conference to mark the the International Day of Mine Awareness and Assistance in Mine Action, per Report.

Speaking at the conference, Vugar Suleymanov, the chairman of the board of the Azerbaijan Republic Agency for Mine Action (ANAMA), stated that after the end of the Patriotic War, 350 people were blown up by mines, of which 65 died.

According to Suleymanov, the number of mine incidents in Azerbaijan has been decreasing. However, the sad reality is that over 70% of landmine victims are innocent civilians, including individuals of all ages. Currently, the total number of mine victims in Azerbaijan stands at 3,429, out of which 357 are children and 38 are women. Tragically, 595 people have lost their lives due to mine explosions.

Suleymanov has also stated that Armenia has provided little information on the mines in the Jabrayil, Zangilan, and Gubadli districts. According to him, Azerbaijan was recently given only eight data sheets on mines planted around the Murovdag mountain range in the Kalbajar district. However, the accuracy of these data was quite low. The mine threat study reveals that 70% of the mines are placed in areas outside the contact line. This indicates that these mines are aimed at the civilian population.