KABUL, Dec. 17 (Xinhua) -- A total of 137 people lost their lives and more than 330 others sustained injuries following the blasts of unexploded ordnances, remnants of past wars, across Afghanistan since the beginning of 2024, local media reported Sunday.
"As of the start of 2024, approximately 240 separate incidents have taken place in Afghanistan, resulting in a total of 470 fatalities, including 386 children who have been either martyred or injured," TOLOnews quoted Nooruddin Rustamkhil, head of the directorate of mine action coordination, as saying.
According to Rustamkhil, among the deceased, 125 children, 10 men, and two women were accounted for, while the injured comprised 264 children, 53 men, and 16 women.
During the same period, 150 square kilometers of land across the country have been cleared of unexploded mines, he added.
War-ravaged Afghanistan is reportedly one of the most landmine-contaminated countries in the world, with dozens of people, mostly children, being killed and maimed every month.■