At least eight children have lost their lives to unexploded ordinance over the past one week while playing with the war remnants or collecting metal scraps to sell, the United Nations International Children’s Emergency Fund (UNICEF) said in a series of tweets on Sunday.
Hit by decades of war, particularly by the Taliban insurgency over the past two decades, Afghanistan remains one of the world’s most contaminated places with remnants of war, mostly landmines and unexploded ordinance.
“In 2022, more than 700 children were killed or maimed because of unexploded ordinances and war remnants. An average of two children every day!” the UN agency said about the death toll caused by these explosives over the past year.
Highlighting the “devastating impact” of these war remnants on children in the war-torn Afghanistan, the UNICEF reiterated on the need for a collective work in support of demining efforts and mine risk education to protect the children.
The UN agency further said that it was increasing its mine-risk education efforts to educate children, caregivers, and communities across the country.
Nearly 606 square kilometers of lands in Afghanistan is said to be contaminated with landmines and unexploded ordinance.
