Why the IED problem in Mali is bigger than you think

Aside to the headline-grabbing conflicts arising in Iraq, Eastern Europe and Nigeria, violence in Mali persists. Among the recent attacks made by rebel groups have been those targeting UN peacekeepers and civilians, often with suicide bombs on outposts or bustling markets.

Since January 2013, the United Nations Mine Action Service (UNMAS) – which currently operates programmes in 16 countries worldwide – has been at work in Mali under the request of the Department of Peacekeeping Operations (DPKO) to assess the threat of explosives, including land mines, improvised explosive devices (IEDs) and unexploded ordnance (UXO). Today, UNMAS contributes to the effort to not only mitigate the threat, but to enhance national capacities to deal with the danger and to protect civilians from any explosive hazard that remains. Yet the race to close the gap on the threat is a hard run, and one without a clear finishing line. Since 2013, 261 Malian forces, peacekeeping troops, French forces, civilians and others have been killed or injured by IEDs alone...Download the whitepaper to read more.

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