Land mines


Land Mines

Latest update: 24.02.2022

Traditionally, landmines have been used in military science as a defensive strategy, aimed at slowing the enemy down or denying armed forces passage through certain terrain. These explosive devices are often concealed or under the ground and are designed to destroy targets that cross them. They can be classified in two main groups; anti-personnel mines and anti-tank mines, aimed at persons and tanks respectively, as their names suggest. Sadly however, minefields tend to last longer than the conflicts they are used in, becoming remnants of war, injuring and killing people for many years after the conflict has ended and rendering areas unusable for decades. This has been the case in the Occupied Syrian Golan. According to official Israeli sources, “More than 75,000 dunams, which are about six percent of the Golan Heights, are suspected of being mined. The Golan has about 2,000 minefields located on the outskirts of populated areas, neutralizing grazing land, agricultural land and nature reserves 1.

 

From the beginning of its occupation of the Syrian Golan, Israel made substantial efforts to fortify the territory against attacks – this has included the creation of minefields throughout the Occupied Syrian Golan. These minefields have remained in place and are concentrated in the area around the 1973 ceasefire line that was established following the 1973 Arab – Israeli War.

New anti-personnel mines have been laid by the Israeli military as recently as 2011. Furthermore, the Occupied Syrian Golan also contains the remnants of minefields laid by Syrian and French forces during their control over the territory, as well as mines from the period of the British Mandate, laid by Jordan and Egypt. Minefields are located all over the Occupied Syrian Golan and Minefields are located all over the Occupied Syrian Golan, and beside the ones indicated on the maps, there are unofficial reports on additional minefields, which have been verified in field tours, as well as incidents of stepping on landmines, which indicate the presence of unmarked minefields around and within Druze villages in the Golan 2

Since 1967, it is estimated that at least 69 Syrians have been victims of landmines in the Occupied Syrian Golan. Among these, 18 died, half of whom were children. Israeli civilians, Israeli soldiers and tourists have also been victims of landmines, however, accurate figures on casualties are difficult to obtain.

For a preliminary background on the use of landmines in the Occupied Syrian Golan,

please see Al-Marsad’s publication – ‘Landmines in the Occupied Golan:

Israel’s obligations under International human Rights and Humanitarian Law’, available below.

The mined areas in the occupied Golan Heights

Location
Potential Land Use
Area (Square km)
Notes
Ein Gonen

Nature reserve

3


Had Ness

Urbanization

2

Partially cleaned in 1998

Had-Ness reservoir

Water

1


Gesher Banot Yaakov

Nature reserve

5

Partially cleaned in 1998

Nahal Ein Gev

Nature reserve

-


Gamla

National Park

0.5


Khan Tawfiq

Historic site

-


Mazpor Beit Tziyada

Nature reserve

0.5


Mazpor Negev Knarot

Nature reserve

5


Hof Nukeib

Public beach

0.5


Wadi Daborah

Nature reserve

-


Shmurat Susita

Nature reserve

5


Susita - Tel Atar

National Park

1


Yahudia

Nature reserve

-


Ein Qinia

Urbanization Agriculture

-

Private Property

Majdal-Shams

Urbanization

0.5

cleaned in 2013-2018

Massa’ada

Grazing area

-


Buqa’atha

Grazing area

-


Nahal Hermon

Nature reserve

4


Odem

Urbanization Agriculture

1


Sha’al

Urbanization Agriculture

2


Snir

Nature reserve

3


Ghajar

Nature reserve

-


Muradot Hagolan

Nature reserve

-


Tal Za’atar

-

0.5


Khirbat Nukhaila

Historic site

0.25


Har Baron

Nature reserve

0.25


Mazuke Harav

Nature reserve

5


Al Mansura – Al Hamra

Grazing area

Over 100

Suspected of mines/unmarked

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Minefields tend to last longer than the conflicts they are used in, becoming remnants of war, injuring and killing people for many years after the conflict has ended and rendering areas unusable for decades.
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