Libya Clears 14,000 Explosives, Families Return Home

Farmers are coming home to land that was too dangerous to touch just months ago.

Between January and September this year, demining teams cleared 14,066 pieces of explosive ordnance from Al-Sweihli Farm near the coastal Libyan city of Misratah. Displaced residents now have the option to return to their land for the first time since the civil war ended.

The clearing operation represents a partnership between the UN's support mission in Libya, Italian foreign aid, local Libyan partners, and the HALO Trust. These groups have worked together since 2018 to remove landmines and unexploded bombs left behind from years of conflict.

Misratah witnessed some of the most intense fighting during Libya's civil war, which erupted after the 2011 overthrow of Colonel Moammar Gaddafi. Between 2011 and 2020, various armed groups battled for control, leaving behind thousands of hidden explosives that can remain deadly for generations.

"Libyan civilians should not be exposed to such dangers," said Fatma Zourrig, Chief of UNSMIL's Mine Action Program. The recent field visit by the UNSMIL Mine Action team came after an explosion in Misratah's Al-Sikt area reminded everyone how urgent this work remains.

HALO Trust began training explosive clearance specialists in Tripoli in 2018 before expanding operations to other cities. Technical assessments during clearance operations found that abandoned ammunition depots pose the biggest ongoing risk for accidental explosions.

One such depot was identified near Misratah airport, and HALO teams have been working to clear it throughout this year.

The Ripple Effect

The impact of this clearing work extends far beyond Libya. In northern Sri Lanka, HALO safely removed its 300,000th landmine left over from that island's civil war, clearing an area larger than Manhattan and allowing 250,000 people to return home.

Meanwhile, Libya itself is moving forward on multiple fronts. In September, the UN facilitated a breakthrough agreement between Libya's competing governments to hold elections within a year and resolve contentious issues around electoral law and candidate eligibility.

Every explosive removed is a child who can play safely, a farmer who can tend crops without fear, and a family that can rebuild what war took away.