Reference :
V-P-ET-E-00365
Date :
05/09/2024
Caption :
Tigray. Portrait of Birhane, 17, victim of an unexploded ordnance.
Confidentiality level :
public
Publication restrictions :
publication without restrictions
Description :
Birhane was 16 when he was injured by an unexploded ordnance while saving 7 children he found playing with it. He lost one leg and multiple fingers on both hands. He received support from the ICRC's physical rehabilitation team who gave him a prosthetic leg and worked with him to get him walking again. However the psychological scars of his experience remain.
Ethiopia: children disproportionately affected by weapon contamination
Rural areas of northern Ethiopia that have experienced heavy fighting in the past years remain heavily contaminated by unexploded ordnance. Weapon contamination poses severe risks for civilians, especially children.
"We have served 243 UXO victims, and it is only the tip of the iceberg because there are people and injuries that are beyond the scope of our practice. Among the beneficiaries we have served, around 80 percent are children," said Venkatakannan Packirisamy, who manages the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) physical rehabilitation program in Ethiopia. The program provides mobility devices and physical rehabilitation services to people with disabilities, focusing on the regions affected by armed conflicts.
Millions of people live and work in areas with a heavy presence of unexploded ordnance. The continuous threat leads to profound psychological consequences and affects all areas of life, hampering educational and economic opportunities, as well as access to vital resources like agricultural land and water....
Weapon contamination seriously affects food production in regions that suffer from food insecurity and high malnutrition rates, especially among new mothers and children under the age of five.
The ICRC together with Ethiopian Red Cross Society works with the affected communities to raise awareness and reduce the risk. It also urges the authorities and international actors to proceed with clearance work, a task of tremendous proportions, especially in places where conflicts are still ongoing. All stakeholders must do more to protect communities from the indiscriminate harm caused by these weapons.
Source: ICRC media newsroom, 08/10/2024
Original material :
digital
Resolution :
8192x5464
Orientation :
landscape
Colour/B&W :
colour
