Rats to the Rescue: Heroes in Cambodia's Minefields

In Cambodia, African giant pouched rats are proving invaluable in detecting land mines, aiding specialists in clearing explosive remnants from decades-long conflicts. These trained rodents, along with dog teams, work diligently to make fields safe again, embodying a crucial part of humanitarian demining efforts by organizations like APOPO.

Rats may send some squealing, but in Cambodia, they play a vital role in saving lives. Teams of African giant pouched rats, trained to detect land mines, have become indispensable in a country littered with deadly remnants of past conflicts.

These rodents, growing up to 45 cm and weighing as much as 1.5 kg, skillfully traverse dangerous fields. Their task is to alert handlers when they sense TNT, the explosive commonly found in land mines.

With over 1.1 million mines cleared since 1992, and more than 2.9 million other explosive remnants neutralized, these rats, alongside trained dogs, are invaluable to APOPO's humanitarian demining missions across Cambodia.

(With inputs from agencies.)