SYRIA: Landmines and unexploded ordinance continue to take toll on civilian population of Kobanê

KOBANÊ, Syria — Landmines and unexploded ordinance continue to take a toll on the civilian population of Kobanê, along the Syrian–Turkish border. A civilian was killed, and two others injured, by a landmine on Wednesday in the village of Zor Megar, west of Kobanê in North and East Syria.

Local sources identified the deceased as Sheikh Hindi (40) and the injured as Mahmoud Bozan (38) and Imad Khalil (35). The mine exploded as the men were working among the pistachio trees in the village of Zor Megar.

A medical source from al-Amal Hospital in Kobanê confirmed that Hindi had lost his life before arriving at the hospital. The two injured men are receiving treatment and are in stable condition.

In September 2014, the Islamic State launched an operation to capture the city from local defenders. Over the course of two months of brutal urban fighting, the city laid largely ruined, but the defenders — with the assistance of the air strikes by the U.S.-led International Coalition — successfully repelled the attack.

The battle left an unknown number of unexploded remnants of war scattering the region. Occasionally a civilian is unfortunate enough to find one.

A landmine exploded last April in the village of Bupan, also west of Kobanê, injuring a civilian who was plowing agricultural land.

In March, in the village of Sarzuri to the east of the city, a child was killed and his father injured by another landmine.

Thorough efforts to detect and disarm landmines and unexploded shells have not been possible due to a lack of resources and trained personnel.