In a message on the occasion of the upcoming International Day for Mine Awareness and Assistance in Mine Action on April 4, Vahidi said unexploded mines and ordnance are the negative outcomes of armed conflicts among countries and governments.
He added that mines and cluster munitions, characterized by their failure to distinguish military personnel from civilians, inflict great pain on both troops and civilians during a war, and also negatively affect the environment and human communities after the war.
“The Islamic Republic of Iran is among the countries that has suffered extensive damage as a result of the excessive use of mines and cluster bombs by [executed Iraqi dictator] Saddam’s military forces during the Iran-Iraq war (1980-1988),” Vahidi pointed out.
The Iranian defense minister went on to say that more than 20 million mines and nearly 20 million unexploded shells and explosives were left over in Iran after the Iran-Iraq war.
He added that Iran began mine sweeping operations in the mine-affected areas after the war, and defused cluster ammunition and explosives that were scattered around.
