Xinhua, April 4, 2008

UN: Afghanistan still heavily mined

Mines and explosives killed over 600 Afghans last year - that is an average of 50 people every month.

Afghanistan has about 800,000 people with disabilities.

KABUL -- Despite great progress has been made over the last six years, Afghanistan is still one of the most heavily mined countries in the world, a U.N. official said here on Friday.

Dr Haider Reza, head of the United Nations Mine Action Program in Afghanistan said more than one billion square meters of land have been cleared across Afghanistan.

"More than 350,000 anti-personnel mines, more than 19,000 anti-tank mines and millions of pieces of other explosive elements have now been destroyed," he said.

Reza noted that mines and explosives killed over 600 Afghans last year - that is an average of 50 people every month.

The U.N. official said the figure is too high and more efforts must be made to reduce the number of people killed, injured and maimed by landmines in Afghanistan.

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