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Photo story: EU-funded DRC’s Mine Action Raises Awareness about Explosive Ordnance in Yemen

The ongoing conflict in Yemen has left behind vast minefields and unexploded ordnances, posing a deadly threat to civilians. Amid worsening economic hardship, families, including children, often resort to collecting and selling scrap metal, unknowingly putting their lives at risk by handling explosive remnants of war.

This photo story follows Farida and Abdulfattah, who are dedicated members of the Danish Refugee Council’s Explosive Ordnance and Risk Education (EORE) and Non-Technical Survey (NTS) team, which is funded by the European Union (EU). They deliver life-saving EORE and NTS services in Mutaradif village in Mocha District, Taiz Governorate, and collaborate with DRC’s explosive ordnance disposal (EOD) team to remove explosive ordnance (EO). Their work empowers communities with the knowledge that they need to stay safe and encourages them to take action to save lives and protect their futures.

In response to the ongoing threat of EO, between July 2023 and March 2025, DRC reached 17,274 individuals through lifesaving EORE activities, delivered across 758 sessions in Mawza, Mocha and Khokha districts in Yemen.

Farida raises awareness in the Al Mutaradif village about the deadly threat of landmines, especially among children. To deliver her message, Farida uses a powerful teaching tool: a comic strip that tells the story of a young boy who lost his leg after encountering EO. Through this relatable and visual method, she helps the community understand the devastating consequences of tampering with EO, turning education into a life-saving intervention. Photo: Helmi Marei, 2024

During the awareness sessions, Farida encouraged the community to report the locations of EO they had been collecting to sell as scrap. This is a practice that is driven by their need to feed their families, but one that carries deadly risks. Many community members who participated in the EORE session were unaware of the immediate and long-term dangers these remnants of war posed to themselves and their loved ones. Remarkably, the children responded with awareness and courage, sharing information about other areas contaminated with hazardous items, helping to make their village safer. Photo: Helmi Marei, 2024

An eight-year-old boy Sakher, from the Al Mutaradif village, was among the children who attended the EORE. After learning about the dangers, he shared information that led Farida and the HMA team to visit his family. DRC’s team met with Sakher’s father to better understand the type of EO the child had found. This was an important step in preventing further risk to the household and the community. Photo: Helmi Marei, 2024

Accompanied by his father, Sakher led DRC’s HMA team through the terrain to the exact spot where he had found the EO. His guidance was crucial to help the team to safely locate and assess the threat, turning his awareness into concrete action that saves lives. Photo: Helmi Marei, 2024

The work of the EORE team extends beyond education; they also conduct non-technical surveys (NTS) to identify and assess whether areas are hazardous. Following Sakher’s report, Farida and Abdulfattah pinpointed the exact coordinates of the site where EO was found and then shared this with DRC’s EOD team. Photo: Helmi Marei, 2024

To ensure the safety of the community, Abdulfattah photographed the rocket from a safe distance, accurately recording its coordinates, and placing a warning sign at the site to prevent anyone from approaching. He then alerted the EOD team to arrange for its safe removal. The EOD team removed the rocket within two days, removing this deadly risk from the village. Photo: Helmi Marei, 2024

This close-up image, which was taken from a safe distance, shows the EO that Sakher reported in the village of Al Mutaradif in Mocha District, Taiz Governorate. Photo: Helmi Marei, 2024