Maputo, 26 Oct (AIM) – Residents of Mafarinha neighbourhood, outskirts of Beira city, in the central Mozambican province of Sofala, have detected an anti-personnel mine and a 60-millimeter mortar in a field during construction works.
The explosive devices were found by two individuals named António Amaral and Alberto Simão. Taken by surprise, both individuals immediately informed the Mozambican police (PRM) who then removed the devices.
According to PRM spokesperson, Dércio Chacate, the devices were removed by experts, and nobody became injured.
“We then carried out the necessary procedures in order to avoid accidents. This kind of device may cause irreparable damages when handled inadequately.
Last September, the Police collected 33 military explosive devices following the death of one person and injury of two others as the result of a detonation.
During Mozambique’s years of warfare, first against the Portuguese colonial regime, and then against the Rhodesian and South African racist regimes, it became one of the most heavily mined countries in the world.
In 2015, Mozambique was declared free of land mines, after two decades of intensive mine clearance. But this did not mean that every last piece of unexploded ordnance had been detected and destroyed.
The residual explosives are still in the Mozambican soil, and still pose a potentially lethal threat.
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