Contamination

The significant mine, cluster munition remnant, and other unexploded ordinance (UXO) contamination in Western Sahara continues to pose a daily threat to the local, nomadic, and refugee populations, along with UN personnel and military observers, and humanitarian actors.[1] Contamination from mines and explosive remnants of war (ERW) negatively impacts socio-economic growth and development, limiting access to fluctuating and seasonally-dependent water sources vital for animal herding and small-scale agriculture on which local populations depend.[2]

The UN reported that many of the remaining minefields are located in areas with increasing civilian activity between April 2014 and April 2015.[3] According to the UN, civilians have been returning home from refugee camps and building infrastructure northeast of the Berm, in several areas that were largely abandoned since 1976. Some of these areas remain heavily contaminated by mines and ERW, which the UN said was “limiting any additional growth, curtailing livelihoods and placing residents at risk.”[4] 

Mine contamination

The exact extent of mine contamination across Western Sahara is not known, although the areas along the Berm[5] are thought to contain some of the densest mine contamination in the world.[6] The contamination is a result of fighting in previous decades between the Royal Moroccan Armed Forces (RMA) and the Popular Front for the Liberation of Saguia el Hamra and Rio de Oro (Polisario Front) forces.

As of end 2014, Western Sahara had almost 260km² of confirmed hazardous areas (CHAs) containing mines to the east of the Berm (see table below).[7] This appears to be a significant decrease from the situation in March 2014, when UNMAS estimated that contamination totaled 292km².[8] 

Mine contamination east of the Berm as of end 2014[9]

Both the north and south of Western Sahara contained CHAs (see table below).[10]

Mine contamination by region east of the Berm as of end 2014[11]

A survey in 2006–2008 by an international NGO, Action on Armed Violence (AOAV), had identified 37 mined areas on the east of the Berm, with nearly half located in Bir Lahlou, followed by Tifariti, Mehaires, and Awanit.[12] As of August 2015, according to UNMAS, the number of confirmed minefields remaining east of the Berm had increased to 43.[13]

Neither survey nor clearance has been conducted in the 5km buffer zone to the east of the Berm.[14] The extent of contamination west of the Berm remains unknown, and as of August 2015, no survey had been carried out there.[15] The RMA controls territory to the west of the Berm where it has been conducting large-scale demining. According to UNMAS, the RMA cooperates with the UN Mine Action Coordination Center (MACC) and submits regular monthly reports, helping to build a clearer understanding of the mine and explosive remnant of war (ERW) threat across Western Sahara.[16]

Cluster munition remnants

Western Sahara had almost 4.7km² of area confirmed to contain cluster munition remnants as of the end of 2014. Both the north and south of Western Sahara still contain confirmed cluster munition-contaminated areas (see table below).[17]

Cluster munition contamination by province as of end 2014[18]

The Royal Moroccan Armed Forces used artillery-fired and air-dropped cluster munitions against the Polisario Front forces during their conflict in Western Sahara from 1975 to 1991. According to the Saharawi Arab Democratic Republic (SADR), cluster munitions of the types BLU-63, M-42, and MK-118 were used by the Royal Moroccan Armed Forces in multiple locations in Bir Lahlu, Dougaj, Mehariz, Mijek, and North Wadis.[19] 

While clearance had been projected to be completed by the end of 2012,[20] the discovery of previously unknown contaminated areas meant this target date was not met. As of the end of 2014, 49 known cluster munition strike zones east of the Berm required clearance; three of these areas were discovered only in June 2014.[21] New strike areas are expected to be found as information is received from local populations.[22]

Other explosive remnants of war

A 2008 AOAV-managed survey identified one area containing unused ammunition and 433 ERW spot clearance tasks.[23] From 2012 to August 2014, AOAV carried out 42 spot tasks, during which 46 ERW and 29 submunitions were destroyed.[24]

Program Management

The UN Mission for the Referendum in Western Sahara (MINURSO) manages a MACC. MINURSO MACC coordinates mine action activities east of the Berm, including clearance of mines and ERW for humanitarian purposes, route verification, risk education, and capacity-development activities. Mine action activities have been undertaken by the MACC in partnership with international NGOs AOAV and Norwegian People’s Aid (NPA), local NGO Sahrawi Campaign to Ban Landmines, and commercial contractors Mechem and MineTech International (MTI). 

In September 2013, the Polisario Front established a local mine action coordination center (the Saharawi Mine Action Coordination Office, SMACO), which will eventually be responsible for coordinating mine action in Western Sahara east of the Berm and for conducting land release.[25] SMACO, which was set up with UN support, started operating in January 2014. During the first half of 2014, AOAV and MINURSO MACC trained SMACO to coordinate and lead mine action activities east of the Berm. Trainings were held on human resources, operations, logistics, management, and finance-related aspects of mine action, as well as quality management and the Information Management System for Mine Action (IMSMA) database.[26] In 2015, SMACO did not have any operational teams but facilitated the work of its demining partners.[27]

Strategic planning

MINURSO MACC operates in accordance with the Strategy of the United Nations on Mine Action for 2013–2018. It planned to develop a mine action strategy specific to Western Sahara in the second half of 2015.[28]

Operators

AOAV and MTI were the two implementing operators conducting mine and cluster munition clearance and survey in 2014, with the support of MINURSO MACC. AOAV was operational in the first half of 2014, until it began a demobilization and handover process on 24 June due to lack of funding and loss of the UN Office for Project Services (UNOPS) tender for mine action in Western Sahara. In September, MTI took over the UN tender and began operations, and AOAV completed formal handover on 23 October 2014.[29] Mine action was previously implemented through a partnership between AOAV and Mechem in 2012–2014.[30]

From 1 January to 31 August 2014, AOAV had the following capacity: two multitask teams (MTTs); one mechanical clearance team (MCT); one Mine Wolf and Vehicle Mounted Mine Detection System; one battle area clearance (BAC) team; and a total of 72 staff, of whom 68 were local.[31] AOAV reported deployment of two new mine-protected vehicles (MPVs) in 2014; a CASSPIR and a TAPIR.[32] From 1 September to 31 December 2014, MTI’s mine action capacity comprised one Vehicle-Mounted Ground Penetrating Radar System, one community liaison team, two MTTs, and a total of 59 staff.[33]

In 2015, NPA was deploying to Western Sahara with two MTTs for a two-year period. MTI expected to continue to operate with the same capacity in 2015. MINURSO MACC also secured funding for an additional MTT for a nine-month period.[34]

Land Release of Mined Areas

The total mined area east of the Berm released by clearance in 2014 was approximately 1.2km², compared with 2km² in 2013.[35] In addition, a further 52km² of suspected hazardous area to the east of the Berm was handed over to local communities in 2014, after the completion of a combination of non-technical and technical survey, carried out in 2012–2014.[36] Two route verification tasks using a vehicle-mounted mine detection system (VMMDS) were completed for MINURSO’s military component totaling over 1.8km², up from the verification of 0.8km² in 2013.[37]

To the west of the Berm, according to a UN Secretary-General report, the RMA reported clearing 222.8km² in territory under its control between April 2014 and April 2015. This is a slight decrease from the nearly 260km² it reported clearing between April 2013 and March 2014.[38] However, no further details were provided, and this figure has not been included by the Monitor in the total amount of land cleared.

Survey in 2014

Almost 4.2km² across three areas was confirmed as mined by survey in 2014 by MTI.[39] No mined area survey was conducted in 2013.[40]

Clearance in 2014

According to UNMAS, AOAV, and Mechem, and later MTI, cleared more than 1.16km² in 2014, a decrease from the 1.99km² reported cleared in 2013. UNMAS reported that MTI cleared a total of 0.03km², while AOAV-Mechem cleared a total of 1.13km² (see table below).[41] Ten antivehicle mines and 89 items of UXO were destroyed; however no antipersonnel mines were reportedly found by either operator.[42]

Mine clearance in 2014[43]

A total of 524,405m² were released through battle area clearance (BAC) in 2014, compared to 985,000m² in 2013.[44]

Survey and clearance in 2015

In 2015, MINURSO MACC planned the release of some 3km² of mined areas through technical survey and manual and mechanical demining. It expected to continue its quality assurance visits to mine and ERW clearance teams and its verification of patrol routes as requested by the MINURSO military component to ensure safety of movement for UN military observers and verification of transport corridors with a view to ensuring safe movement of local and nomadic populations. The MACC did not expect funding levels to change in 2015.[45]

As of May 2015, NPA had completed recruitment and was training national staff to be deployed as two MTTs in August 2015, initially to carry out survey around the village of Bir Lahlou. NPA was planning to work closely with SMACO to increase SMACO’s capacity.[46]

As of August 2015, two of the remaining 43 minefields with a total area of 4km² had been tasked for clearance in 2015, and operations were ongoing as of writing. UNMAS reported a total of almost 3.6km² across both mined areas had been released by non-technical survey and some 0.25km² had been cleared by manual and mechanical teams in January to end July 2015, destroying in the process 29 antivehicle mines, six items of UXO, and one fuze.[47]

Land Release of Cluster Munition-Contaminated Areas

Total cluster munition-contaminated area released by clearance and technical survey in 2014 was more than 1.75km². This represents an increase of 75% on the extent of cluster munition clearance in 2013.[48]

Survey in 2014

AOAV, Mechem, MTI, and MINURSO confirmed a total of nearly 0.9km² as contaminated with cluster munition remnants through non-technical and technical survey in 2014 (see the table below).

Survey in 2014[49]

Clearance in 2014

AOAV and MTI together released a total of more than 1.75km² of cluster munition contamination in 2014 (see table below) through technical survey and clearance, up by 75% from 2013.[50] This was due to an increase in BAC capacity to address cluster munition strike areas in 2014.[51]

Release of cluster munition-contaminated area in 2014 through technical survey and clearance[52]

Most of AOAV’s mechanical clearance tasks were in the Mijek region. Its BAC team, which operated independently, began operations in the south and concentrated its efforts in the Mehaires region due to high levels of cluster munition contamination. AOAV reported finding and destroying more items in 2014 due in part to a shift in geographic focus to newly identified areas with higher levels of cluster munition contamination. It also reported its clearance productivity tripled from 2013 to 2014 due to an increase in the number of deminers and deputy team leaders deployed.[53]

Mine Ban Treaty Article 5 and Convention on Cluster Munitions Article 4 Compliance

Western Sahara cannot be a State Party to the Mine Ban Treaty. However, in June 2014, the Saharawi Arab Democratic Republic (SADR) submitted a voluntary Article 7 transparency report to the UN “as a sign of the support of the Sahrawi State for the goals of the Treaty.”[54]

Western Sahara also cannot accede to the Convention on Cluster Munitions. However, in June 2014, the SADR submitted a voluntary Convention on Cluster Munitions Article 7 transparency report to the UN, stating that “By submitting its voluntary report, the SADR would like to reaffirm its commitment to a total ban on cluster munitions as well as its willingness to accede to the Convention on Cluster Munitions and be bound by its provisions.”[55]

Clearance of cluster munition contamination in 2010–2014[56]

MACC estimates that current mine action capacity will need 10 years to address high- and medium-threat hazardous areas, including mined areas and cluster munition strike areas.[57] According to UNMAS, key challenges include insufficient information regarding location of hazardous areas, particularly to the west of the Berm; inclement weather conditions such as heavy winds, sandstorms, and temperatures exceeding 50°C; and the impact of Western Sahara’s political status on resource mobilization.[58]