TRIPOLI - UNSMIL’s Mine Action Programme, together with its partners, the Libyan Mine Action Centre, the Libyan Peace Organization, and HALO Trust, delivered a risk education session at Hadaf Al Mareefa School in Salah Eddine, Tripoli on Wednesday.
Throughout the morning, instructors visited the fourth, fifth, and sixth-grade classrooms, meeting with 42 pupils, 27 boys and 15 girls. Through storytelling and practical demonstrations the children learned to recognise and avoid explosive remnants of war and unfamiliar objects.
Many pupils described the items they had seen or heard about in their neighbourhoods. Ahmed, an 11-year-old pupil, said: “Now I know this is a strange object. I won’t forget.”
Across Libya, children often move through areas where remnants of war remain hidden in open spaces, fields, or abandoned sites. For communities still living with the consequences of past and ongoing instability, risk education is essential and potentially life saving.
In 2025 alone, LibMAC recorded 19 casualties among children from explosive remnants of war, including four fatalities. Between 2020 and 2025, 67 children were injured and 18 killed.
“Several families in this area live close to locations impacted by fighting,” said school director, Ms. Asma Sriti. “A school must prepare its pupils not only academically but also to navigate the risks they may encounter outside its gates.”
“Teaching them to recognise explosive hazards is a responsibility not an addition to the curriculum,” she said noting how quickly children pass information on to their siblings, neighbours, and friends. She also requested training for teachers and staff, emphasising that pupils closely observe the behaviour and guidance of their teachers. “If the teachers understand these threats well, the whole school becomes safer”, she added.
“In a context where the impact of past conflict is still felt in daily life, this is where protection begins: informed pupils, equipped teachers, and a coordinated effort to reduce risk,” noted Fatma Zourrig, Chief of the Mine Action Programme. “Our aim is to reach every school we can and help children learn how to stay safe.”
Established in 2019, Hadaf Al Mareefa School received risk education support for the first time this week, as part of ongoing activities funded by Spain and delivered by Mine Action Programme partners since August, targeting children, families, and the wider community.
