US using land mines in Iran? Reports suggest deployment near Shiraz

The United States is reportedly scattering land mines in southern Iran in what seems to be the first such instance in more than 20 years. Experts have claimed that images posted on social media showed American BLU-91/B anti-tank land mines outside the city of Shiraz, close to one of the Iranian ballistic missile sites. The weapons are dropped from an aircraft as part of the gator mine scattering system. This comes as the war in West Asia entered its Day 29 on March 28.

According to a Washington Post report, citing experts, the land mines may have been intended to make it difficult for mobile launchers, which are often positioned near such sites, to launch attacks. The US is the only party in the war known to possess the system.

“While these land mines are meant to target armoured vehicles, they can still be extremely dangerous to civilians,” said Brian Castner, a weapons investigator with Amnesty International, as quoted by the post.

Earlier, Iranian state media reported that at least one person was killed and others were injured from “explosive packages that resemble cans,” warning people to stay away from “any misshapen, deformed, or unusual metal cans.”

The images were posted on social media by Canadian independent journalist Dimitri Lascaris, who has been reporting from Iran.

The Telegraph reported that the mines are dropped by aircraft and explode when they sense magnetic signatures like those belonging to a large vehicle. They are often deployed with BLU-92 anti-personnel mines, although there is no image or information to suggest the latter is being used by the US.

The last known deployment of these land mines by the US was during the Gulf War in 1991. The US had earlier also deployed antipersonnel mines in a single instance in Afghanistan in 2002, according to Pentagon records.

Human rights groups have long advocated for a global ban on the use of antipersonnel land mines, as they could result in death or serious injury even years after the conflicts have ended. However, last year, US President Donald Trump’s administration reversed a Biden-era policy that banned the use of antipersonnel land mines except on the Korean Peninsula.

Disclaimer: WION takes utmost care to accurately and responsibly report ongoing conflicts in West Asia involving Israel, Iran, the US, Gulf nations and non-state actors like Hezbollah, Hamas, Houthis, Islamic State, and others. Claims and counterclaims, disinformation and misinformation are being made online and offline. Given this context, WION cannot independently verify the authenticity of all statements, social media posts, photos and videos.