Egypt's landmine clearance chief, Fathy el-Shazly, told Newsweek: 'We've had at least 10 reports from the military of terrorists using old mines. Experts say weapons from World War Two continue to circulate in the Middle East and they pointed out one Syrian rebel group was using a 70-year-old howitzer. ISIS and its allies in north Africa are believed to be digging up old landmines from World War Two and using them to fashion home-made bombs for use in terrorist attacks. There are thought to be around 17 million landmines buried just under the surface in western Egypt and north-east Libya. The Egyptian Army has now bought 700 armoured vehicles from the US to help fight the insurgents in the Sinai Desert.

Source: The North Africa Journal August 12, 2016 08:17 UTC