In July 2022, Humanity & Inclusion declared the Inzá municipality free of landmines, explosive devices and unexploded ordnance. Over a period of two years, the organization conducted demining operations in eight locations spanning more than three acres in Inzá – land that has now been released back to the region’s 27,000 residents.

"We hope that the land we surveyed will contribute to the construction of a more equal society, to social development and to the development of ecotourism in the region," Arturo Bureo, Humanity & Inclusion's Director of Operations in Colombia, said at a ceremony marking the land’s release back to local communities. "And above all, we hope that the decontamination of Inzá will benefit the indigenous and farming communities that live there." 

Igniting economic growth

Located southeast of Bogotá, Inzá boasts archaeological, architectural and natural wealth. But, as in many parts of the country, indigenous and farming communities have long had to contend with the legacy of mines and improvised explosive devices left over from armed conflict.

Among the most notable landmarks is the National Archaeological Park of Tierradentro, a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Because of the suspected presence of explosive devices, it has never been fully explored or reached its potential as a tourism destination. The municipality is also home to the La Casa del Pueblo public library, which has received a national award for Colombian libraries. With landmine contamination abated, these natural and cultural treasures will again be able to contribute to the region’s development and help revive the local economy.

Justiniano Pencué, a farmer from the indigenous community of Nasa, has waited 10 years to plant and cultivate his land safely. During that time, the danger posed by explosive devices on his land prevented him from expanding his coffee farm.

Now, Justiniano can return to his land without fear. He has a nursery of 5,000 coffee plants ready to be sown and harvested in areas that are finally free of mines.

"I am already preparing the land to plant my coffee,” Justiniano (pictured) says. “With these crops, we’ll be able to make a living to feed ourselves."

Restoring safety to neighbors

Diana Milena Pacho, a member of the indigenous community of San José, is a non-technical demining survey assistant at Humanity & Inclusion. For two years, she worked hand in hand with her neighbors, surveying more than 14 areas suspected of explosive device contamination. Through her work, Diana has helped restore confidence to the people of Inzá, who can now safely live, work and play.

“I have been able to pass on what I've learned to my community, explaining to people not to touch explosives and teaching my family how to be careful,” Diana explains. “With the threat of explosive devices gone, we can now walk around without worrying, work in safety and visit the tourist sites without fear.”

In addition to clearance operations, teams organized 45 mine risk education workshops to help residents learn how to spot, avoid and report explosive weapons. Nearly 6,000 families participated in education sessions.

Mine action in Colombia

Dating back to 1990, 12,200 people have been injured or killed by explosive devices in Colombia. Behind only Afghanistan, Colombia has the second highest number of mine victims in the world. Mine clearance and victim assistance are vital in helping communities safely reclaim their land, boost the local economy and rebuild the social fabric.

With funding from the U.S. Department of State’s Bureau of Political-Military Affairs Office of Weapons Removal and Abatement, Humanity & Inclusion implements mine clearance actions in the five Colombian departments of Cauca, Meta, Nariño, Antioquia and Caquetá. Across Colombia, Humanity & Inclusion has surveyed more than 222,000 acres to identify areas of possible contamination. As part of its holistic approach to mine action, teams also provide mine risk education to affected communities, offer psychosocial support and rehabilitation care to survivors of these dangerous weapons, and help them find gainful employment.

Inzá is the second municipality in which Humanity & inclusion has completed its humanitarian demining operations, following the release of Puracé to its residents in October 2021.

Colombia is among the signatories of the Ottawa Mine Ban Treaty, which marks its 25th anniversary this year. While the U.S. has made progress in its anti-personnel landmine policy, it has yet to join the near-universal treaty.

Lithsouda, 19, lost his right eye and the fingers on his right hand in a cluster bomb explosion when he was a child. With support from Humanity & Inclusion, he is rebuilding his life and supporting other survivors of explosive weapons.

In 2009, 6-year-old Lithsouda was playing outside his grandmother’s house. He started to build a fire, and that’s when he triggered a cluster bomb buried in the ground.

To save him, Lithsouda’s family borrowed money from their neighbors, sold their belongings and hired a car to take him to a hospital three hours away. Lithsouda lost his right eye and the fingers on his right hand and was left with scars all over his body.

Rebuilding his life

Because of his injuries, other people see him as different, which makes him feel excluded.

With support from Humanity & Inclusion, he participates in a group of community volunteers in his village in Laos. Lithsouda has been trained to promote the inclusion and community participation of people with disabilities, including other survivors of landmines and explosive remnants of war.

"All this training has opened my mind and encouraged me to spend more time with my friends,” Lithsouda says.

Because of his disabilities, Lithsouda was unable to help his family by working in the field or fishing. Today, he works as a farmer and is empowered to participate in activities. He enjoys playing sports, fetching food, looking after livestock and spending time with friends.

Chue Por lost his arm in a landmine explosion 15 years ago. With the support of Humanity & Inclusion, he has regained his independence and advocates for explosive weapons to be banned.

In January 2007, Chue Por was fishing with friends in northeastern Laos when he pulled a landmine out of the water. It exploded in his hand. He was rushed to the hospital, where the doctors amputated his arm. His family sold all their livestock and borrowed money from their neighbors to save his life.

Chue Por, who was 18 at the time of the incident, dropped out of school because he felt too dependent and different from his friends. Because of his amputation, he could no longer work on his parents' farm or find other ways to help support his family.  

Humanity & Inclusion met Chue Por in 2019 and referred him to a rehabilitation center, where he was fitted with an artificial hand and given physical therapy.

"Thanks to Humanity & Inclusion, I am supported both physically and psychologically,” Chue Por says. 

Rediscovering sense of purpose

Today, Chue Por is receiving training to become a volunteer in his village and support people with mental health issues. He also participates in inclusion activities to help people with disabilities find their place in the community.

Chue Por grows rice and beans to sell, so he can support his family.

"Today I can clearly see the positive changes in my life,” he explains. “I am happy to be with my family and to look after my cattle.”   

Chue Por is engaged in advocacy efforts supporting the Mine Ban Treaty, the Cluster Munitions Convention and other international frameworks to prevent the use of landmines and other explosive weapons during war.

Mohammad Rasool manages Humanity & Inclusion’s programs in Kandahar, Afghanistan. He provides insight into the country’s dire humanitarian situation, one year after the Taliban seized power.

Since the Taliban took control of the Afghan government in August 2021, the humanitarian context has deteriorated significantly. Facing an economic collapse, devastating drought and consequences of war, people find it difficult to simply survive.

Q: What is the humanitarian situation in Kandahar today?

The humanitarian context is still complex. There has been no improvement in food insecurity and unemployment and poverty are widespread. The financial system is not fully functional, with businesses unable to access their funds in the banks, for example. Inflation, drought and recent flooding in some districts have exacerbated the situation.

Humanitarian needs are huge and have not been fully met by the assistance that the international community pledged in August 2021. As for mine action programs, funding has been cut, which is increasing the exposure and vulnerability of communities living in areas contaminated with mines and other explosive remnants of war.

Q: What is daily life like in Kandahar?

People are extremely anxious about their future. The daily life of women and girls has been very seriously affected. For almost a year now, girls have not been allowed to go to school beyond 7^th grade. Thousands of girls and women are very concerned about their education and future.

Q: Is Humanity & Inclusion still able to work with and for women?

Our female staff have been able to continue working in the provincial capital and six districts of Kandahar province. The credit for this goes to our committed field staff for their active engagement with community elders and local representatives, and to the authorities for facilitating access to our life-saving activities in conflict-affected and underserved areas.

Q: What services does the Humanity & Inclusion team offer?

Humanity & Inclusion provides rehabilitation care, as the country’s health system is unable to meet the demand. Given the scarcity of physical therapy services, we have developed a 3-year training curriculum and are currently training some 120 future physical therapists. We also provide psychosocial support to many people suffering from stress and anxiety, as there are very few mental health services in the country. And we conduct risk education sessions, as the presence of mines and explosive remnants of war remain a daily threat to the population.

Lastly, Humanity & Inclusion teams in Kunduz and Herat have started distributing cash assistance to support families with the lowest income. Between six and nine allowances of $200 are being paid to 1,600 households to enable them to buy food and access basic services such as healthcare.

Q: What kinds of people do you see at the rehabilitation center?

We had more than 700 cases in June. Most of the disabilities are congenital or due to birth defects or road or domestic accidents. Fifty cases were due to injuries caused by armed violence.

Fortunately, we are not seeing any new cases of war victims. There has also been a reduction in the number of new victims of mine or explosive remnants of war accidents. This is largely due to Humanity & Inclusion’s mine risk educators who raise the awareness of thousands of children and adults in at-risk areas each month.

Rehabilitation needs in general are still huge. People come to the center every day, some of them from very far away. There are only two rehabilitation centers serving the south of the country, so for some families the journey to the center can take a whole day. Since August 2021, we have seen a significant increase in patient numbers. Now that the fighting, the roadblocks and the strict security measures have ended, more people are able to get to us. We are currently seeing more than 130 people a week at the Kandahar center.

Q: How clear is the link between disability and explosive devices in Afghanistan?

Based on the data from our center, the majority of people with acquired disabilities are victims of explosive devices, landmines and other remnants of war. In Afghanistan, disability prevalence is very high; 80% of the adult population has some form of disability due to mines and explosive remnants of war, armed conflicts or limited access to health and nutrition services.

Q: How have the activities at the center been expanded?

Last June, Humanity & Inclusion opened a Step-Down Unit at the Kandahar rehabilitation center. This unit is designed to ensure a smooth and uninterrupted transition from acute trauma care to comprehensive rehabilitation services for patients with complex injuries and a high risk of complications and permanent disability. It also provides healthcare services for musculoskeletal and neurological sub-acute conditions that require comprehensive early rehabilitation care.

The unit adopts an interdisciplinary approach (health, rehabilitation and psychosocial support services) during the early comprehensive rehabilitation phase. It also ensures the provision of psychosocial support for patients and relief for caregivers, and accompanies the recovery process through further follow-up at the rehabilitation center, outpatient care and community inclusion.

Humanity & Inclusion’s team of doctors and nurses provides a 24/7 service at the Step-Down Unit. Between June 6 and July 26 alone, they admitted and treated 56 patients: 28 men, 16 women, six boys and six girls.

After an unexploded ordnance accident, Imran receives rehabilitation care and new artificial limbs from Humanity & Inclusion’s specialists.

Imran, 7, was playing with his friends when the imaginable happened.

 “I was climbing the hill in Kohak village with my friends,” he explains. “I saw something strange and when I touched it, it blew up.”

Imran’s father took him to Mirwais Regional Hospital, where he was admitted for surgery. Imran’s injuries were so severe that doctors amputated both of the boy’s legs.

As Imran recovered from the operation, he was referred to Humanity & Inclusion’s rehabilitation center in Kandahar, Afghanistan. There, measurements were taken to make him two custom-fit artificial limbs. After he was fitted, Humanity & Inclusions’s physical therapists helped him strengthen his muscles to walk again. He also received a wheelchair to assist him with his daily living. 

Imran is returning back to his routine.

“I feel like I’ve got my legs back,” Imran exclaims. “I can walk again and play with my friends.”  

Imran’s father, who is a driver for a living, is committed to supporting his family and his son’s recovery.

”I am committed to getting him back to school and will support him to finish his studies,” he says.

HI's rehabilitation center

Located in Kandahar, Humanity & Inclusion's rehabilitation center treats people with conflict-related injuries, often caused by explosive devices. Survivors of serious accidents, patients with diabetes-related amputations and people with polio are also among those receive physical therapy services. The center is staffed by 52 professionals specializing in physical therapy or psychosocial support work. It is the only rehabilitation center in southern Afghanistan.

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Injured by a landmine in 1970, Mrs. Chanh advocates for mine action and inclusion in Laos.

When she was 15, Mrs. Chanh stepped on a US-made landmine in Laos. The next day she went to the hospital, where her left leg was amputated.

For more than 50 years, Mrs. Chanh, 74, has been living with an artificial limb made by her uncle using scrap metal.

Humanity & Inclusion is working with Mrs. Chanh to provide her a new artificial limb and rehabilitation care. The organization has also given Mrs. Chanh a financial boost to help her raise cattle to generate income.

“We are celebrating the 25 years of the Ottawa Mine Ban Treaty this year,” says Julien Kempeneers, regional humanitarian mine action specialist for Humanity & Inclusion. “I want to underline that Victim Assistance is an obligation of the treaty and is vital for survivors, their relatives and communities. Victim Assistance comprises a vast range of activities including emergency and on-going medical care, rehabilitation, psychological and social support, facilitation of access to education, economic inclusion and more. Assistance needs lasts long after clearance operations end. A country or a region can be freed from explosive ordnances but the survivors are still there and need assistance.”

As a disability champion for Humanity & Inclusion, Mrs. Chanh shares her story and advocates for change.

"Bombs and mines must be removed from my village, so that people and younger generations can safely enter the forest and live without fear,” she explains. “I don't want anyone to go through the same experience as me.”

Weapons clearance in Laos

Laos has the highest level of cluster bomb contamination in the world. Nearly 500 square miles of land is considered to be dangerous.

Humanity & Inclusion launched its first weapons clearance operations in Laos in June 1996, removing contamination of exploded bombs, bomb fragments, explosive remnants, grenades, and other ammunitions. Deminers also detect larger, unexploded bombs—often weighing several hundred pounds—transport them to a specialized site to be safely detonated.

Since 2006, Humanity & Inclusion has decontaminated more than 1,200 acres of land in Houaphan and Savannakhet provinces. Since 2019, Humanity & Inclusion has destroyed 6,710 unexploded ordnances in Laos.

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As a child, Joc was injured by a cluster munition in Laos. Today, Humanity & Inclusion provides support to the young man who lives with multiple disabilities.

When Joc was 5, he was searching for worms to use as fishing bait in his village in northeast Laos. As he was digging in the ground, he came across an older cluster munition that was buried. It exploded. Joc spent a month in the hospital following the incident. His left arm was amputated, and he has had difficulties with hearing well ever since.

In the 14 years since the incident, Joc has found himself feeling marginalized. Daily activities like getting dressed, cooking and riding a bike are difficult. School was challenging because he was unable to hear his teacher or socialize with friends.

In 2019, Joc attended a training course organized by Humanity & Inclusion for the inclusion of people with disabilities. Soon after, Joc became an inclusion ambassador for Humanity & Inclusion; he supports, advises and integrates other people with disabilities in his village.

“Having a survivor like Joc as a local ambassador on inclusion helps us to raise awareness of communities on the fact that survivors and people with disabilities have the right to participate meaningfully in all decision-making processes that affect them,” says Julien Kempeneers, a regional armed violence reduction specialist for Humanity & Inclusion.

This year, Joc, who is now 19, attended a livestock training organized by Humanity & Inclusion. Raising animals will be a great opportunity for Joc to generate income and become even more independent.

"I want to have a good future, to be included in the society, to live happily and independently,” Joc explains.

Weapons clearance in Laos

Laos has the highest level of cluster bomb contamination in the world. Nearly 500 square miles of land is considered to be dangerous.

Humanity & Inclusion launched its first weapons clearance operations in Laos in June 1996, removing contamination of exploded bombs, bomb fragments, explosive remnants, grenades, and other ammunitions. Deminers also detect larger, unexploded bombs—often weighing several hundred pounds—transport them to a specialized site to be safely detonated.

Since 2006, Humanity & Inclusion has decontaminated more than 1,200 acres of land in Houaphan and Savannakhet provinces. Since 2019, Humanity & Inclusion has destroyed 6,710 unexploded ordnances in Laos.

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Humanity & Inclusion has launched new mine clearance operations in Casamance, Senegal, to help communities safely access their villages, schools and medical facilities.

The new operations in southern Senegal launched in May 2022. The operations, which will last until March 2023, are focused on Kaour and Adéane, in the regions of Ziguinchor and Sédhiou.

"In these regions, the areas surrounding some schools, medical centers, roads, villages and fields are still polluted, or are suspected of being polluted by explosive devices," says explains Abdourahmane Ba, head of mine clearance operations in Senegal. "But as the number of vital infrastructures is limited, it is essential that people have safe access to them."

Approximately 25 acres of land need to be released back to the communities. The aim is to clear areas contaminated by mines and other explosive devices and investigate suspected hazardous areas.

Dating back to 2008, the Humanity & Inclusion’s deminers cleared more than 116 acres of land during previous actions in Senegal.

Diverse mine clearance techniques

Humanity & Inclusion has set up its operational base about 30 miles from Ziguinchor. The teams stay there for 10 days while they carry out operations, then have a 3-day rest in town. The demining staff recruited for the project have more than 10 years' field experience. The teams are made up of a project manager, an operations manager, two team leaders, six deminers, two nurses, two community liaison officers, a mechanic, two development officers and three drivers. In total, 10 deminers work for Humanity & Inclusion in Casamance, including two women.

"We do manual demining,” Ba explains. “Deminers inspect the land with metal detectors, inch by inch, along a marked corridor.”

Humanity & Inclusion also does mechanical demining, using the Digger, a demining machine that extracts mines and explosive remnants from the ground. Ba explains that the machine is mainly used in areas where there is a suspicion of undetectable mines such as the Belgian-made PRBM35 and the Spanish-made C3A/B, which are frequently found in Casamance.

"We are also planning to use drones to support our demining activities," Ba adds. "Among other things, they will improve our mapping of suspected hazardous areas. They’ve been used successfully in the Chadian desert, but now we need to test them in a different environment. In Casamance, we are demining in an environment mainly composed of forests and dense vegetation.”

A mission is underway to evaluate the feasibility of using drones.

Working in the rainiest region in Senegal, operations will have to adapt to the rainy season, which runs from July to October. Torrential rains would slow down demining activities, and for safety reasons neither deminers nor the Digger can work on flooded ground.

Working alongside communities

"Alongside the demining activities, Humanity & Inclusion conducts awareness and risk education sessions in the region, in partnership with the Senegalese association of mine victims," Ba continues. "The aim is to understand the habits of the population and to suggest safe behaviors that are adapted to their daily lives. Thanks to the work done by our liaison officers, all the members of the communities—including people with disabilities, women or the elderly—are involved in deciding which areas should be cleared as a priority.”

Humanity & Inclusion will also accompany communities once they start returning to the cleared areas and contribute to economic recovery. The organization will provide people with construction materials, and will also support the development of income-generating activities.

Contamination in Senegal

Armed independence groups and Senegalese government forces have been in conflict for almost 40 years. Anti-personnel mines and anti-tank mines, which were used on a massive scale in the region between 1990 and 2000, still threaten civilians today. Between 1988 and 2017, almost 850 people fell victim to mines or explosive remnants of war.

n Casamance, nearly 300 acres of land are still suspected of being contaminated and need to be made safe. With its substantial natural resources and strong agricultural, mining and fishing potential, clearing land in Casamance is a humanitarian and development priority.

Senegal hopes to achieve its goal of becoming “mine-free” by 2025.

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Gaëlle Smith, emergency rehabilitation specialist for Humanity & Inclusion, explains the severity of blast injuries in eastern Ukraine and the importance of early rehabilitation for recovery. 

“Stop Bombing Civilians” agreement: Who will adopt? How will they implement? What will it change for civilians in conflict? 

Silver Spring, June 13, 2022—The closing consultation for an international agreement to better protect civilians from explosive weapons in populated areas will happen June 17, 2022, at the Palais des Nations in Geneva.

The meeting gathers more than 60 State delegations, including the U.S., as well as representatives of international and civil society organizations. It features the presentation of the final version of the international agreement. This consultation concludes a two-year diplomatic process. A Humanity & Inclusion delegation will continue its dialogue with States to ensure that the final text effectively improves civilians’ chances to survive active conflict, elevating experience from the organization’s work with conflict survivors from countries such Syria, Yemen, Ukraine, Libya and Iraq.

The final agreement will be submitted to States for adoption at a conference to be held later this year, in a location not yet announced.  

In April, State representatives gathered in Geneva, reaching broad consensus on the urgent need to commit to preventing the civilian harm that explosive weapons used in populated areas causes. Several States appeared ready to exclude use of the heaviest explosive weapons from populated areas by including a presumption of non-use of explosive weapons with wide areas effects in populated areas. Many States declared themselves willing to share good practices on their use of explosive weapons in order to better protect civilians from these weapons.

Two months later, the final version of the international agreement takes good steps, but in other places doesn’t go far enough. It provides clarity on the humanitarian impact of explosive weapons, including their reverberating effects. And the text contains strong language on victim assistance, clearance and teaching civilians to mitigate risk through education about living amid explosive ordnance. However, the agreement is less ambitious than expected when it comes to limiting the use of explosive weapons in populated areas.

“In two years of diplomatic process, we have come a long way,” says Jeff Meer, U.S. Executive Director. “From denial on the part of States with respect to the humanitarian consequences of explosive weapons, we have moved to their full acknowledgment of patterns of harm caused to civilians by these weapons. But this international agreement is only the beginning of a long process to achieve tangible improvements to the protection of civilians. The next step will be its endorsement by States—and the big question is: which ones will do so? Humanity & Inclusion will do everything in our power to obtain the most endorsements possible, including from militarily active States like the United States, United Kingdom, and France. And then we look forward to seeing real implementation steps to create a safer world for all.”

The international agreement’s impact will depend on States’ political will to fully commit to protecting civilians. Delegates will be closely watching the reaction of affected States as well as States that are actively participating in military operations. If they endorse the agreement, then Humanity & Inclusion believes that the agreement can provide a starting point for States to change military policies and practices to ensure better protection of civilians and civilian objects from explosive weapons.

This diplomatic process began two years ago at the Vienna conference in October 2019. The goal? To draw up an international agreement that will reinforce the protection of civilians in war zones. Humanity & Inclusion has tirelessly discussed with States the need for an agreement that should effectively end to the suffering from the use of explosive weapons in populated areas.

“The international agreement could be a breakthrough for the protection of civilians in war zone,” notes Alma Al Osta, Humanity & Inclusion's Disarmament and Protection of Civilians Advocacy Manager. “Will States join the agreement when it is put forward for adoption? Will they have the political will to implement it? We will be watching the measures and policies they implement very closely. With the Explosive Weapons Monitor that we co-created in 2022, we will monitor military policies and practices to ensure better protection of civilian from explosive weapons.”

Devastating humanitarian consequences

Massive and repeated use of these weapons in populated areas is one of the main causes of long-term humanitarian crises, and civilians are the principal victims. Indeed, 90% of those killed and injured by explosive weapons in populated areas are civilians, according to Action on Armed Violence. Those injured are at risk of lifelong disabilities and severe psychological trauma.

Cities in Ukraine offer a devastating illustration. They are currently enduring massive bombings, which regularly sees banned weapons such as cluster munitions in play. At least 8,000 civilians have been killed or injured since the beginning of the war on February 24, but the actual figures are certainly much higher. According to the United Nations Human Rights Monitoring Mission in Ukraine, “most of the civilian casualties recorded were caused by the use of explosive weapons with a wide-area effect, including shelling from heavy artillery and multiple launch rocket systems, and missile and air strikes.”

Bombings have destroyed vital infrastructure, including hospitals, houses, and water supplies. Twelve million people have already fled to neighboring countries or other parts of Ukraine. This massive and systematic bombing of populated areas has triggered the worst humanitarian crisis in Europe since World War II.

“Let’s be clear: the most destructive weapons should not be used in cities and towns, and other places where civilians live,” Meer adds. “Bombing and shelling in populated areas robbed 240,000 people of their lives between 2011 and 2020. Almost all casualties of bombing in urban areas are people like you and me who were never involved in the fighting, who did all they could to protect themselves from explosive violence. It is an unacceptable evolution of modern conflict that civilians are now by far the principal victims. Today, weapons such as 500-kg bombs, designed for use in open battlefields and with an impact radius of several hundred feet, are dropped from planes on crowded cities. Such weapons show no mercy for civilians. At Humanity & Inclusion, we will be relentless in denouncing the harm caused to civilians by urban bombing and call for better protection of civilians.”

United Nations Secretary General António Guterres seems to agree. In his annual report on the protection of civilians in armed conflict on May 18, 2022, he recognizes the ‘urgent need’ for parties to conflict to ‘avoid the use of explosive weapons with wide-area effects in populated areas’. Secretary Guterres also acknowledges the ‘reverberating effects on essential services such as water, sanitation, electricity and health care’ caused by bombing and shelling in populated area. In his report, Secretary Guterres expresses his support for ‘continuing efforts towards a political declaration to address this problem’: ‘Such a declaration should include a clear commitment by States to avoid the use of wide-area effect explosive weapons in populated areas’.

Chronology of the diplomatic process

• October 2019: The Vienna Conference launches the political process for an international agreement against the use of explosive weapons in populated areas. This conference was attended by 133 States. A majority of States announced their willingness to work on a political declaration to end the human suffering caused by the use of explosive weapons in populated areas.
• November 2019: First round of consultations on the text of the political declaration
• February 2020: Second round of consultations with 70 states in attendance to discuss the political declaration
• March 2020: Restrictive measures to combat the COVID-19 pandemic began, and the in-person consultation process was suspended
• September 2020: Ireland organized a high-level panel followed by a webinar to address the challenges of urban warfare and the use of explosive weapons in populated areas
• March 2021: Informal online consultations
• April 2021: The National Defence Commission of the Belgian Federal Parliament adopted an historic parliamentarian resolution on the protection of civilians from bombing and shelling in populated areas.
• May 2021: Parliamentarians from five countries participated in the European Inter-Parliamentarian Conference on the future political declaration to protect civilians from the use of explosive weapons in populated areas. Since then, more than 250 parliamentarians from Belgium, France, Germany, Luxembourg, Norway, Switzerland and the European Union have signed the European Inter-Parliamentarian Joint Statement.
• April 2022: Final round of consultations to negotiate the final text of the international agreement against the use of explosive weapons in populated areas
• June 2022: Final version of the text to be shared and concluded
• Date to be determined, hopefully in 2022: Political declaration opens for endorsement.

More information

• View a copy of the "Political Declaration on Strengthening the Protection of Civilians from the Humanitarian Consequences arising from the use of Explosive Weapons in Populated Areas"