Anti-personnel mines and armed Antipersonnel (AP) mines maim and
kill civilians and combatants indiscriminately, even long after
hostilities have ended. The injuries they cause, such as the
loss of limbs, are particularly horrific, disable survivors for
life, and require expensive and long-term assistance. In
addition to their human costs, AP mines prevent communities from
having safe access to land, water and infrastructure.
Humanitarian relief, economic development and post-conflict
reconstruction efforts are also severely hampered in mine-
affected areas. Armed non-State actors (NSAs) are involved in
the AP mine problem in several ways. Due to their low cost and
easy availability, AP mines have become a weapon of choice for
many NSAs worldwide. conducted by Geneva Call identified at
least 40 NSAs that used AP mines - including victim-activated
IEDs - between 2003 and 2005. As argued in the 2008 “[u]se of
antipersonnel mines by NSAGs [non-State armed groups] has
declined modestly in recent years. However, NS