A UN and European Union funded de-mining program has cleared 9,163 land mines through 2008 in the buffer zone which has separated the island of Cyprus for decades.
According to a press release issued on Monday by the United Nations Development Program's Partnership for the Future - Mine Action Centre (MAC), the task of delivering a mine-free buffer zone is 80 percent complete.
However, the de-mining work risks coming to a halt at the end of January 2009 if more funding is not found soon, said MAC.
A total of 2 million euros (about 2.85 million U.S. dollars) are needed to continue until the end of 2009 and 5 million euros in total to rid the buffer zone of landmines by 2010.
Michael Raine, program manager of the MAC, called for more financial support for de-mining activities.
"I believe this humanitarian work is of fundamental importance for the future of Cyprus," said Raine.
"It would be very unfortunate to let it lapse because of lack of money when we are so close to the goal of a mine-free buffer zone," he added.
The recent landmine-related accidents in Cyprus are a tragic reminder of the need to continue de-mining efforts in the buffer zone, he pointed out.
Several people were injured by mine explosions this month when they tried to illegally cross from the Turkish Cypriot north to the Greek Cypriot south. (1 U.S. dollar = 0.7008 euros)
Source:Xinhua
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