Southern communities welcome return of mine-free land
Dalya Dajani; 10/8/08
Born in a small village in the heart of Wadi Araba, Musa Al Ali had been long familiar with the harsh conditions of these sun-scorched plains. Whether cultivating crops or raising livestock, it is the only life he and the tribal communities living along Jordan’s border with Israel have known for decades. But for 31-year-old Ali, it was a life whose potential had been limited despite the vastness of the landscape. “A large part of these lands have been off-limits to our communities due to landmines that were buried here a long time ago,” Ali said. “People couldn’t use the land for farming and their herds couldn’t roam freely, which is a sad plight for those who live here,” he added. Here in the Kingdom’s southern desert region, where thousands struggle to make a living, the lingering effect of a decades-old conflict have been unforgiving. The land, where nomads once roamed and herds grazed freely, had been held hostage by over 50,000 landmines planted by the Israeli army following the 1967 Arab-Israeli war. These landmines had contaminated around 14 million square metres of land between the Dead Sea and Red Sea, blocking any hope of life or development. In 1994, however, Israel returned these lands after it signed a peace treaty with Jordan.