Algeria says colonial era mines all cleared

Algeria announced the end of a 50-year mine-removal operation on Wednesday, as its army has destroyed 8.9 million mines dating back to the French colonial era along the country's eastern and western borders, Algeria Press Service (APS) reported Thursday.

"This mine-removal operation has come to an end after over 50 years of constant work on the ground by army explosive-specialized units, for the final eradication of mines in our country," APS quoted Gen. Boualem Madi as saying.

He stressed the significance of the mine clearance operation, as large fertile lands have been retrieved for various development projects.

The destruction of mines illustrates Algeria's commitment to Ottawa Treaty, which aims at banning the use, storage, production and transfer of anti-personnel mines, said Madi.

Between 1956 and 1959, French colonists planted mines along Algeria's borders with Morocco and Tunisia as part of the Challe and Morris Line, a defensive line of electric fences, minefields and other military barriers, built to prevent weapons smuggling for the Algerian Revolution (1954-1962).

In 2007, France gave Algeria a map marking the locations of millions of mines the French occupation forces had planted inside the country, which sped up the mine-removal process.

Many Algerians, especially children and shepherds, have been reportedly killed or disabled by the colonial-era mines. Endit