Anti-personnel mine
In Article 2(1) of the 1997 Anti-Personnel Mine Ban Convention, an anti-personnel mine is defined as 'a mine designed to be exploded by the presence, proximity or contact of a person and that will incapacitate, injure or kill one or more persons.' Specifically excluded from the definition are mines 'designed to be detonated by the presence, proximity or contact of a vehicle as opposed to a person, that are equipped with anti-handling devices'.
Under Article 2(3) of 1996 Amended Protocol II of the Convention on Certain Conventional Weapons,
"Anti-personnel mine" means a mine primarily designed to be exploded by the presence, proximity or contact of a person and that will incapacitate, injure or kill one or more persons.
The precise meaning of the word "primarily" in this earlier treaty is unclear and led to a clearer definition in the 1997 Anti-Personnel Mine Ban Convention.
Last updated on: 30 November 2013