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STORY: SOUTH SUDAN / UNMAS UNEXPLODED ORDNANCE DEMOLITION
TRT: 04:44
SOURCE: UNMISS
RESTRICTIONS: NONE
LANGUAGE: ENGLISH / ARABIC / NATS
DATELINE: 09 FEBRUARY 2026, BILNYANG, SOUTH SUDAN
1. Med shot, demolition countdown
2. Wide shot, explosion
3. Wide shot, demolition reaction
4. SOUNDBITE (English) Zehrudin Sukanovic, Chief, Mine Action Programme, South Sudan, United Nations Mine Action Service (UNMAS):
“It’s a reminder of the war legacy that still poses a threat after the conflict is over. And it’s also a reminder of our joint commitment, UNMISS, UNMAS, in addressing explosive ordnance threat, restoring the land for the safety of the people who are living around, restoring the agricultural areas, and enabling humanitarian projects to be implemented and development projects to be completed.”
5. Close up, red UXO sign
6. Wide shot, male and female demining team scanning ground
7. Med shot, male and female demining team marking found item
8. Wide shot, moving shot showing unoccupied land and tarmac road
9. SOUNDBITE (English) Graham Maitland, Officer in Charge, United Nations Mission in South Sudan (UNMISS):
“The work we see here today shows clearly shows why our collective efforts matter. They save lives, restore dignity, and enable communities to move forward in safety and create the space for longer-term sustainable development.”
10. Wide shot, UNMAS car moving along road in Bilnyang
11. Wide shot, UNMAS staging ground in Bilnyang
12. Med shot, UNMAS staging ground in Bilnyang
13. Med shot, donkeys moving through UNMAS staging area
14. SOUNDBITE (Arabic) Raymond Ladu, Bilnyang Village Chief:
“After this mine clearance, and with the rainy season due to start in April or May, we will start cultivating crops before people settle here. This is also important because cattle-keepers will be moving around the areas. We will be happy if the area is cleared, so that people can move freely and live safely.”
15. Close up, red UXO sign with female deminer in background
16. Med shot, Up pan of female deminer with metal detector
17. Wide shot, male deminer excavating UXO
18. Med shot, male deminer excavating UXO
19. Close up, deminer excavating UXO
20. SOUNDBITE (English) Zehrudin Sukanovic, Chief, Mine Action Programme, South Sudan, United Nations Mine Action Service (UNMAS):
“Just giving you an example, if we had the machines deployed on the site behind us, this task would be done in seven days, more or less, while this basic clearance capacity, manual mine clearance team, we are on this task now for almost three months and yet it is not finished. If we had the dogs, our progress on clearing the roads would be much faster than just deploying deminers with detectors to sweep on the roads.”
21. Wide shot, UNMAS vehicle crossing Freedom bridge heading to Bilnyang
22. SOUNDBITE (English) Jon. Jurkuach Baraha, Chairperson, National Mine Action Service:
“These hazards do not only threaten lives, they restrict movement, delay returns, and limit opportunities for farming and threaten daily live. For communities, mine action is not an abstract concept, it is about safety, access, and dignity.”
23. Various shots, UNMISS DSRSG Political OIC, observing the demining and getting suited up to enter the minefield
This explosion in the quiet farming community of Bilnyang, on the outskirts of South Sudan’s capital Juba, was cause for celebration, not fear, as the United Nations Mine Action Service (UNMAS) conducted a controlled detonation of an unexploded ordnance. The clearance of these deadly devices follows a terrible accident a few years ago when a child was killed after stumbling across an explosive item buried in the soil.
SOUNDBITE (English) Zehrudin Sukanovic, Chief, Mine Action Programme, South Sudan, United Nations Mine Action Service (UNMAS):
“It’s a reminder of the war legacy that still poses a threat after the conflict is over. And it’s also a reminder of our joint commitment, UNMISS, UNMAS, in addressing explosive ordnance threat, restoring the land for the safety of the people who are living around, restoring the agricultural areas, and enabling humanitarian projects to be implemented and development projects to be completed.”
The tragic loss of this child is just one of 5000 such incidents that have plagued South Sudan following decades of war. To combat the threat, UNMAS is working in partnership with the UN peacekeeping mission (UNMISS) and South Sudan’s National Mine Action Authority, to methodically identify and destroy these hazards in communities across the country. Over more than 20 years, they have reduced the contaminated land area from 412 square kilometres to 20.9 square kilometres.
SOUNDBITE (English) Graham Maitland, Officer in Charge, United Nations Mission in South Sudan (UNMISS):
“The work we see here today shows clearly shows why our collective efforts matter. They save lives, restore dignity, and enable communities to move forward in safety and create the space for longer-term sustainable development.”
When war raged in the 1980s, thousands of people fled Bilnyang and surrounding areas. Many have not come back because of ongoing insecurity and concerns about the threats to life that still linger in the soil. But, with support from UNMAS, there is a glimmer of hope of a return to normality.
SOUNDBITE (Arabic) Raymond Ladu, Bilnyang Village Chief:
“After this mine clearance, and with the rainy season due to start in April or May, we will start cultivating crops before people settle here. This is also important because cattle-keepers will be moving around the areas. We will be happy if the area is cleared, so that people can move freely and live safely.”
This tangible support is at risk due to a UN-wide financial crisis, including cuts in international donor funding, which has forced UNMAS to significantly downsize its capacity, reducing demining teams from 19 to eight and demobilizing detection dogs and three large, automated mine clearing machines, which are the safest and most efficient method of detecting harmful devices.
SOUNDBITE (English) Zehrudin Sukanovic, Chief, Mine Action Programme, South Sudan, United Nations Mine Action Service (UNMAS):
“Just giving you an example, if we had the machines deployed on the site behind us, this task would be done in seven days, more or less, while this basic clearance capacity, manual mine clearance team, we are on this task now for almost three months and yet it is not finished. If we had the dogs, our progress on clearing the roads would be much faster than just deploying deminers with detectors to sweep on the roads.”
Despite the challenges, UNMAS and partners continue doing their utmost to create an environment that is ripe for recovery and development.
SOUNDBITE (English) Jon. Jurkuach Baraha, Chairperson, National Mine Action Service:
“These hazards do not only threaten lives, they restrict movement, delay returns, and limit opportunities for farming and threaten daily live. For communities, mine action is not an abstract concept, it is about safety, access, and dignity.”
Removing these threats also helps communities connect to de-escalate tensions and prevent conflict, which is more important than ever, as South Sudan continues to slide deeper into crisis and sustainable peace becomes a more distant dream.
