Bosnia mine blast kills three

 

Two Bosnian police officers and one civil protection worker were killed in a landmine blast in eastern Bosnia on Saturday, the third such accident this week in an area still strewn with mines from the 1990s, Fena news agency reported.

 

The accident happened in Masici village as police were called to mark and secure the ground before the arrival of mine clearers, it said.

 

"The three men died when a landmine went off," local police told the news agency.

 

Three mine clearers were killed and one was seriously injured during mine removal operations on Monday and Tuesday in northern Bosnia.

 

Almost 4 per cent of the Balkan country remains planted with landmines left over from the 1992-95 war, endangering the lives of 900,000 people, said Prime Minister Nikola Spiric, launching a new anti-mine campaign this week.

 

He said 480 people had been killed and almost 1,140 injured in mine accidents in Bosnia since the war ended.

 

Experts say it will take at least 10 years to clear the mines and 80 million Bosnian marka ($64.5 million, Dh237 million) per year to fund the demining.  (Reuters)