ANAMA official: 415 mine victims recorded in Azerbaijan since end of Patriotic War

Since the end of the Patriotic War, 415 people in Azerbaijan have become victims of landmines and unexploded ordnance, of whom 71 lost their lives in incidents and 344 sustained various degrees of injuries, Ramil Azizov, Head of the International Relations, Awareness, and Media Department at the Azerbaijan National Agency for Mine Action (ANAMA), said, as quoted by Report.

Speaking at an event organized by the Azerbaijan Mine Victims Association to present the results of the project Support for Reducing the Impact of Mine/UXO Incidents carried out from June through November, Azizov noted that more than 248,000 hectares of land have been cleared of mines and unexploded ordnance since the 44-day war:

"As a result, 236,798 mines and various explosive devices have been detected and neutralized by specialists, including more than 40,000 anti-personnel mines. These cause tragic incidents leading to amputations of lower limbs. The agency collects all incident data in its information system. To date, 415 citizens have been victims of such incidents - 71 killed and 344 injured. Overall, 253 incidents have occurred since the Patriotic War. However, since 1991, more than 3,400 citizens have been killed or injured due to mines and unexploded ordnance. Among them, 362 were minors and young people, and 38 were women."