Demining includes: the neutralisation and disposal of explosive devices; the preliminary surveys aimed at determining the location of contaminated areas; the mapping and marking of these areas.
For deminers to be able to remove mines and unexploded ordnance from the ground as soon as possible, it is essential to provide them with precise knowledge of the area they are about to clear. This is the work of our non-technical survey teams, who intervene...
In Ukraine, in March 2023 alone, more than 100 civilians were killed or maimed by mines and explosive ordnance. With the arrival of a warmer weather, the number of accidents is likely to increase. FSD has drastically increased its staff and expanded its area of...
Yahidne, a village two hours north of Kiev, is now sadly known as a "martyr village" of the war in Ukraine. More than 300 inhabitants, including about 60 children, were locked up for almost a month in a basement last March. Some of them died during their captivity....
Located between Kiev and the Belarusian border, the province of Chernihiv was targeted in the early days of the conflict and was heavily shelled throughout March 2022. Hostilities have now ceased, but much of the province is destroyed and contaminated by remnants of...
In Ukraine, around 20 FSD deminers are currently working in the Donbass region, where an armed conflict has been going on since 2014. Roman, Stanislav and Igor are part of the team deployed in Stara Mykolaivka. A few years ago, this locality used to be a Ukrainian...
Each year, thousands of civilians lose their lives and are injured during explosions from various weapons and ammunition: bombs, rockets, mines, etc. Involved in almost half of the cases in 2020 are “improvised explosive devices”, tinkered with everyday objects and...
Humanitarian demining has long been seen as a rather masculine field. Today, mentalities have changed and many organizations have mixed or all-female teams. FSD trained its first female deminers 15 years ago in Sri Lanka, and recently established a demining team...
In some of the countries where FSD operates, climatic conditions fluctuate between extremes. The dry and scorching summers are followed by harsh winters where snow and rain fall in abundance. These variations not only greatly affect the daily lives of the inhabitants...
In August, Iraqi government COVID-19 restrictions on NGOs began to lift and mine action organisations were allowed to start back to work with a 25% capacity. FSD mobilised two full teams in Kudila village, Makhmour District, Nineweh Province; this included refresher...
