Old ordinance cause of explosion at Israel's military landfill site

Tel Aviv [Israel], June 25 (ANI/TPS): There was an explosion caused by an old ordinance at the Nof Yam landfill near Tel Aviv used for the disposal of military equipment. Israel's Ministry of the Environment criticized the country's Ministry of Defense for the incident that occurred last week saying the MoD must remove any explosive material from the site and that a re-examination of the area is required to restore safety.

The IDF and the Ministry of Defence are responsible for handling explosive materials and completely evacuating them from any area and site in Israel where this type of activity has occurred in the past. They are the ones who provide the final approvals that the area is clean and safe in this respect. Only then does the process of restoring the land from gases and contamination begin.

The interest of the Ministry of Environmental Protection is that the lands in all of Israel, including the state's lands, be restored quickly and safely because contaminated land produces real damage to human health, safety, and the environment.

According to the information provided to the Ministry of Environmental Protection from the MoD and the IDF in charge of the safety issue, there were not supposed to be explosives in the entire Nof Yam IDF compound, including the bunkers, as they were previously handled.

In view of the serious incident, the Ministry of Environmental Protection will require the Ministry of Defense and the IDF to re-inspect the entire area and any other suspicious area, to examine the safety issue that is their responsibility and to remove all explosive materials, so that it is possible to begin rehabilitating the land safely. (ANI/TPS)