Saturday, March 31 2018 14:41

ArmInfo. Members of the US Congressional Committee on Armenian Issues Frank Pallone, Jackie Spier and David Valadao, Adam Schiff and Brad Sherman made statements in connection with the death and injury caused by the explosion of mines by HALO Trust employees.

According to the press service of the Armenian Assembly of America,  the congressmen expressed their condolences to the families and  friends of the deceased sappers.

"Despite the fact that there are always risks associated with  unexploded ordnance during de-mining, I am deeply saddened by the  news of this terrible incident." I express my condolences to the  families of these people. I hope that the investigators of Artsakh  will quickly understand the circumstances of the incident.  their  counterparts in Congress, to ensure that the demining activities  continue unhindered and as secure as possible, "Pallone said. In his  turn, Speer stated that the people of Artsakh continue to suffer from  the devastating consequences of the war with the highest level of  incidents from landmines per capita in the world, one third of which  are related to children. He stressed that he will continue to  contribute to the activities of the HALO Trust in Artsakh.

On March 29, three employees of the HALO Trust-engaged in the  clearance of landmines and unexploded ordnance, died in  Nagorno-Karabakh during the demining work, and two others were  injured. As a result of the explosion Pavel Akopov, Marat Petrosyan  and Samson Avanesyan were killed. Two more sappers Aram Mkrtchyan and  Garik Gokhiryan were injured. Doctors assess their condition as  difficult.

HALO Trust is a British charity and American non-profit organization  that deals with the clearance of landmines and unexploded ordnance  that could pose a threat to civilians. HALO is an abbreviation of the  Hazardous Area Life-Support Organization. Founded in 1988 by a member  of the British Parliament and former Colonel Colin Campbell Mitchell.  The staff of HALO Trust has more than 7000 sappers. Her staff worked  in Nagorno-Karabakh, Cambodia, Mozambique, Somalia, Sri Lanka,  Eritrea, Abkhazia, Chechnya, Kosovo, Angola and Afghanistan.