The Nepalese army laid 53 minefields during the course of its bitter civil war Wednesday, June 15, 2011
Nepal army clears final landmines
The Nepalese army laid 53 minefields during the course of its bitter civil war Five years after the end of the civil conflict in Nepal, the army has destroyed the last minefield in the country.
With this, Nepal becomes the second country in Asia after China to become mine-free.
Clearing the mines was a commitment of the 2006 comprehensive peace agreement.
Since the end of the conflict, mines have caused 473 casualties in Nepal - 78 of which were fatal.
With an explosion that shook the side of a mountain 2,000m (6,500ft) above the city of Kathmandu, the Nepalese army destroyed the last of 53 minefields it had been responsible for laying during the country's 10-year Maoist insurgency.
However, the remote location of many of the fields meant that the task took far longer than the 60 days first anticipated.
The explosion is a symbolic end to this side of the conflict but Nepal's political parties still have a long way to go before they secure peace.
In particular they need to agree on how to demobilise some 19,000 former Maoist soldiers.
Despite their commitment to clearing these mines, the Nepalese government is yet to sign the international Ottawa treaty banning all landmines.
This article is from the BBC News website. ? British Broadcasting Corporation, The BBC is not responsible for the content of external internet sites.
Source: http://www.bbc.co.uk/go/rss/int/news/-/news/world-asia-pacific-13760249
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