Lebanese army destroys 250,000 munitions from Israel's war

More than 24 million square metres of Lebanon still 'contaminated' by explosives

Smoke rises following an Israeli strike on the Khardali area in southern Lebanon. AFP

More than 250,000 munitions left over from the recent Israel-Hezbollah war have been destroyed in Lebanon, an officer in the Lebanese army's mine clearing division has told The National.

Over 24 million square metres of land across Lebanon has been “contaminated” by hundreds of thousands of explosive remnants of war (ERWs), the officer said.

“However, this figure is not definitive, as Israeli attacks are still continuing, and the aforementioned area is likely to increase,” he added.

While most of the ERWs are from Israeli attacks in the recent conflict, some are left over from various wars that have been fought on Lebanese soil over past decades.

ERWs can refer to mines, cluster munitions, unexploded ordnance, abandoned ordnance, booby traps and other devices, according to the UN Office for Disaster Risk Reduction.

The Lebanese Mine Action Centre is overseeing the removal of unexploded ordnance found in fields, around homes and under rubble, in conjunction with local and international organisations.

“The work we do is extremely important for many reasons, the most important of which are … sparing citizens the risk of injury from the explosion of explosive remnants of war; enabling citizens to return to their homes and livelihoods; investing in cleared lands in various areas of life; and contributing to social and economic development,” the officer said.

More than a year of cross-border hostilities between Israel and Hezbollah, which broke out in October 2023 in parallel to Israel's war in Gaza, erupted into an all-out war last September.

Israeli attacks killed more than 4,000 people in Lebanon during the war, and destroyed vast swathes of the country.

Despite a ceasefire agreed in November 2024, Israel continues to carry out near-daily attacks that have killed more than 300 people since the truce. Its troops recently expanded its positions inside the south Lebanese border from five to eight.

Under the terms of the truce, the Lebanese army was tasked with increasing its deployment in south Lebanon, taking over previous Hezbollah or Israeli positions and overseeing the removal of Hezbollah's weapons and any remnants of the war.

The army is expected to present a plan on Friday that would lead to Hezbollah handing over its weapons by the end of the year.

Six Lebanese soldiers were killed in an explosion last month at an arms depot in the south that they were dismantling.

Experts say it is difficult to know just how many munitions Israel dropped on Lebanon during the latest conflict, with the huge variety of explosives and weapons used making the task more difficult. An estimated 10 to 15 per cent of the high-explosive munitions dropped by Israeli fighter jets did not explode.

Lebanon had hoped to be free of unexploded cluster munitions by 2028 and of mines by 2030. The most recent war is likely to push back those deadlines.