Sri Lanka to be mine free soon: military

The Sri Lankan military on Thursday said it would soon clear the nation's former war torn areas from landmines as only 64 acres of land now remained to be cleared.

Military spokesperson Jayanath Jayaweera told journalists in a weekly media briefing here that following the end of the 30-year civil war between government troops and Tamil Tiger rebels, 2,064 acres of land in the country had to be cleared from landmines and explosives which had been buried by the rebels.

Government troops defeated the rebels in May 2009.

The army, together with demining agencies, have to date cleared 2,000 acres of land, mostly in the nation's north and east, which was the most affected by decades of conflicts and operations are ongoing to clear the remaining 64 acres.

"However, since the rebels have buried these landmines and explosives against international rules and regulations, clearing the remaining 64 acres will be challenging," Jayaweera said. "But we are hoping to do it soon," he added.

Thousands of families who had been displaced by the war have already been re-settled back in the cleared areas with the help of demining agencies.

The new government of President Maithripala Sirisena has pledged to re-settle all the families affected by the war in the coming years and has already launched a national mine action program to make the country mine free. Endit