The Carter Center: Unexploded ordnance (UXO) contamination undermines food security in Syria
The US Carter Center said in a report that Unexploded ordnance (UXO) contamination in Syria undermines the country’s food security and pushes the Syrians to more starvation.
The report confirmed that 100,000 to 300,000 pieces of ordnances have not exploded yet across all Syria, according to data that estimates using more than 972,051 explosive munitions from late 2012 until the mid of 2021, with the rate of failure to explode estimated between 10% and 30%.
The report revealed that the unexploded ordnance that spreads everywhere prevents access to arable lands, water resources, and infrastructure, exacerbating people’s dependence on assistance.
The report made it clear that the UXO exacerbates land deterioration by contributing in overcultivation of uncontaminated lands which leads to intensified agricultural practices that may lead to soil degradation and depleting its nutrients.
The report pointed out that overcultivation depletes water resources and leads to soil erosion. It also increases the pressure on already weakened food production capabilities in Syria.
Syria has the sixth-highest number in terms of food insecurity, with about 12.1 million Syrians facing food insecurity and 2.6 million others on the brink of hunger.
The “Cluster Munition Coalition” report issued a report last year, confirming that 13 out of 14 Syrian governorates had been subjected to cluster munition attacks since 2012.
The report added that the victims of UXO in Syria during 2021 constituted a quarter of the victims worldwide.
