PPMiSr anti group mines and P2 anti tank mines collected by a HALO survey team
The urban centres of Somaliland, in particular the capital Hargeisa, were heavily mined with mines laid around refugee camps, private houses and airports.
Large perimeter anti-tank and anti-personnal minebelts, were established surrounding military camps; minefields were created along the border with Ethiopia; roads, paths, bridges and water storage areas were mined, as were areas surrounding smaller military positions. Many of these areas remain uncleared and therefore unused due to the threat of mines and all remain a serious and real threat to the local population.
The majority of mines found in Somaliland are plastic-bodied minimum metal mines. This combined with rocky, laterized, metal contaminated ground and inconsistent depths at which the mines were laid, makes detection of mines difficult.
The war between Ethiopia and Somalia left behind large amounts of unexploded ordnance (UXO) in Somaliland, with thousands of items of UXO littering Hargeisa and other regional centres. The existence of mines and UXO in Somaliland threatens the lives and livelihoods of both sedentary and nomadic populations.
HALO teams have come across evidence of explosives having been harvested from mines, (in particular anti-tank mines), and explosive ordnance, for illegal re-sale or re-use. Explosive harvesting is potentially harmful to country-wide and regional security and stability.