Even if the air fights have stopped in Gaza, the danger remains for the Palestinians returning to certain parts of this territory torn by the war due to the unploded bombs on the ground.
They blend into the heaps of rubble and destruction.
Efforts are underway in Gaza to locate and remove these bombs, starting with the city of Rafah, south of Gaza, which was the most violent fighting of the 15 -month war between Israel and Hamas. But the advisory groups on the mines say that, to deal with the large amount of unplodced (UXO) ammunition left on site, a wider response is essential.
For the inhabitants of Gaza, it is an additional fear of death, despite a ceasefire that stopped the air and land offensives.
“We are afraid for young people, for our families,” said Raed al-Akka, 27, father of three children from Rafah, at CBC News.
“I’m afraid to leave my house and come across a rocket that explodes on me, my wife or my children, or in the street on my neighbors … anywhere.”
Even if the ceasefire between Israel and Hamas seem to be holding in Gaza, the danger remains present for the Palestinians because the unplodced ammunition seems to be spread in the areas of the enclave torn by the war. Mohammed Muqdad, head of the explosives department in Rafah, says the teams work daily to withdraw what they can with a minimum of equipment.
Access to Gaza is still limited, especially in the first stage of Ceasefire between Israel and HamasIt is difficult to estimate the likely magnitude of contamination of explosives at this stage, said Greg Crowther, director of programs at Mines Advisory Group (MAG).
“It is clear that there will be an important threat to life and a long -term obstacle to reconstruction efforts,” Crowther said in an email addressed to CBC News on Friday.
A “dangerous environment”
For the moment, the emphasis is on risk education in the territory.
Mag, who helped to move Gaza after the conflicts of 2008 and 2009, joined forces with the Save Youth Future Society and deployed 20 Risk Education teams through Gaza to teach communities how to stay safe from risks explosive by recognizing, avoiding and signaling possible dangers. . They have given sessions to more than 160,000 people since their launch in September 2024.
Crowther said that because Gaza is densely populated and strongly urbanized, the use of explosive weapons has had a “particularly devastating effect”.
“Beyond what is visible, it is also necessary to take into account objects that have not yet exploded but which remain hidden, endangering people. This creates a dangerous environment, especially when people return home and search the rubble, “he said. .
The United Nations (UNMAS) Antimine Wantling Service previously warned of explosive ammunition which have become “increasingly widespread” in the small coastal enclave which was subjected to heavy bombings by Israel.
He indicated that his teams to neutralize explosives and ammunition (EOD) have encountered aerial bombs, mortars, rockets, projectiles of all calibers, grenades and improvised explosive devices.
The deeply buried bombs are common in Gaza
In Gaza in particular, deeply buried bombs are under or inside infrastructure and under the rubble.
“While families return home, we quickly increase our ability to alleviate the risk that explosive ammunition for civilians and humanitarian workers represent,” said UNMAS in a message published Monday X.
While more and more Palestinians return to different parts of the Gaza Strip after the ceasefire that started on Sunday, an evaluation of the damage by the UN published this month has shown that cleaning more than 50 million tonnes of rubble left following Israeli bombings could take 21 years and cost up to $ 1.2. billions of US dollars.
Mohammed Muqdad, head of the Rafah explosives department, said his teams started locating and withdrawing arms from the first phase of the ceasefire.
“Rafah was particularly affected, the majority of the area was destroyed,” Muqdad told CBC News on Wednesday.
“We were dealing with dozens of unplodced ammunition that we transport to safe areas to possibly get rid of them.”
We teach children to recognize weapons
Until now, the teams have made more than 120 calls to withdraw UXOs, working every day since Sunday.
“The team continues to work on the elimination of other ammunition from residential areas,” he said. “We do everything we can to lift and remove [them]”.
Muqdad said the teams withdrew the bombs used in planes, such as MK, GBU 39 bombs, cannons and tanks, but require special technical equipment to eliminate much larger explosives.
The authorities have asked the inhabitants to stay away from certain dangerous areas and where they are believed that they house many of these devices.
Certain ammunition, such as small explosives ejected by submunition weapons, may not resemble ordinary threats to children at first glance, which can be a danger.
Crowther said that children also participate in risk education sessions to be aware of the types of weapons used during the war.
“It is particularly important to share this information with them, because their natural curiosity can expose it to a greater risk of injury if they fall on explosive weapons and simply assume that these are toys”, -It declared.
Al-Akka asked experts to withdraw the explosives.
“Thus, we can take our freedom and go home, remove the rubble and sit with us,” said Al-Akka.
“We saw enough martyrs and blood effusions during the war.”
Coordination and limited capacity in Gaza
Crowther said that assessments of explosive threats and investigation activities, in addition to technical equipment, must be extended to allow a wider humanitarian response.
“There is currently coordination and limited capacity to carry out these activities, both in terms of required technical equipment and number of qualified personnel in Gaza,” said Crowther.
More than 47,000 Palestinians were killed by Israel during the war that has lasted for 15 months, according to the Gaza Ministry of Health. Due to the war chaos, checking the exact number of victims is difficult and subject to a meticulous examination.
The coastal enclave was largely demolished by the Israeli army following the attack on Hamas against Israel on October 7, 2023. This assault killed 1,200 people and around 250 hostages were taken to Gaza, according to the Israeli accounts. Some 94 Israelis and foreigners are still detained in Gaza. We do not know how much are alive.
The Palestinian civil defense said that it was looking for around 10,000 bodies that would have remained under the rubble.
A study evaluated by peers and published in The Lancette January 9 suggests that official death figures in Gaza could be considerably underestimated. As of June 30, 2024, the Gaza Ministry of Health reported 37,877 deaths; The study estimates that this number was probably about 64,200 on this date.
