JENIN, August 1, 2015 (WAFA) – The Palestinian explosives' engineering police Saturday managed to defuse an explosive device left behind by the Israeli army near the town of Qabatiyeh in Jenin district, according to a police statement.
It said that explosives' engineering police managed to deactivate the unexploded device after receiving calls by local residents about the presence of an explosive device in the area.
The Israeli army usually conducts
drills in the occupied West Bank, especially in the Jordan Valley, after
forcefully displacing dozens of local Palestinian families due to the proximity
of their homes to the training sites.
Palestinians living in these
areas have to also worry about unexploded ordnance left behind by the Israeli
army after the drills, which have led to the death of many Palestinians,
including children, over the past years.
In 2014, three Palestinians were
killed by unexploded ordnance left by Israeli forces in the West Bank's Jordan
Valley, while Gaza remains plagued with unexploded ordnance following the most
recent Israeli aggression.
OCHA Protection of Civilian
report, reporting period: 30 September – 13 October 2014, said that, “On 22
October 2014, a four-year-old child was killed when a [unexploded ordnance] UXO
exploded east of Beit Hanoun, Gaza.
“The presence of unexploded
ordnance (UXOs) continues to pose a high risk to civilians, particularly
children. Following the July-August hostilities, the risk of UXO and Explosive
Remnants of War (ERW) became significantly high.”
It reported that, “Since the ceasefires on 26 August, five Palestinians have been killed in UXO incidents, and six others injured.”
T.R.
