Civilians, including children, make up 84 percent of landmine casualties, with the highest numbers last year in Myanmar.

The number of people killed or wounded worldwide by landmines and explosive remnants of war surged in 2023, according to a new report.

There were more than 5,700 casualties last year, the Landmine and Cluster Munition Monitor group said in its annual report published on Wednesday. The highest number was reported in Myanmar, while significant tolls were also recorded in Syria, Afghanistan and Ukraine.

The global total marks a rise of about 1,000 compared with the previous year. At least 1,983 people were killed and 3,663 injured across 53 countries. Civilians made up 84 percent of the victims, with children accounting for 37 percent, the report said.

Just over 1,000 casualties were reported in Myanmar, which is not party to the Mine Ban Treaty. Syria, which had for the previous three years the highest number of annual casualties, came next. More than 500 casualties were recorded in both Afghanistan and Ukraine.

“Landmines are inherently indiscriminate weapons, meaning that, by design, it is not possible for the mine to be deployed to target a specific person,” read the report. “Hence, casualties can occur among whoever triggers the mine, whether a child or a soldier, as well as anyone nearby.”

The report notes that not all landmine-related deaths and injuries are documented, suggesting the actual figures could be higher.

Alongside Myanmar, Russia, Iran, and North Korea are accused of laying new mines, continuing trends observed in previous years.

These countries have not signed the Ottawa Treaty, an international agreement that bans the use, stockpiling, production and transfer of antipersonnel mines.

The treaty has banned landmines since 1999, and 164 countries are parties to it. However, major powers including the United States, Israel and Russia are not signed up.

Washington was reported on Wednesday to be ready to provide landmines to Ukraine.

In a statement to the AFP news agency, the ICBL said it condemned “this terrible decision” by the US, and vowed to push for it to be reversed. The lobby group also called on Ukraine to “clearly state they cannot and will not accept these weapons”.

Non-state actors, including armed groups, have also been implicated in the use of landmines in conflict zones such as the Gaza Strip, Colombia, India, Myanmar and parts of Africa’s Sahel region, including Burkina Faso and Mali, according to the report.

The report also stated that landmines continue to be produced or procured in 12 countries, including China, Cuba, Singapore and Vietnam.

WASHINGTON (AP) — Linda McMahon has been a constant presence in Donald Trump’s tumultuous orbit, serving in his first administration and supporting his presidential campaigns. Now he’s chosen her to serve as Education secretary.

Here’s a look at McMahon’s background, from business to politics.

McMahon went from wrestling to politics

McMahon is married to Vince McMahon, whose father was a prominent professional wrestling promoter. They followed him into the business, founding their own company that’s now known as World Wrestling Entertainment, or WWE. It became a juggernaut in the industry and American culture.

When Trump was the star of the reality show “The Apprentice,” he made an appearance at Wrestlemania in 2007. The billionaire entertainment mogul participated in an elaborately scripted feud that ended with Trump shaving off Vince McMahon’s hair in the middle of the ring.

Linda McMahon stepped down from her position as WWE’s chief executive to enter politics. She ran twice for a U.S. Senate seat in Connecticut, but lost in 2010 to Richard Blumenthal and in 2012 to Chris Murphy.

Shifting gears, she focused on providing financial support to candidates. McMahon provided $6 million to help Trump’s candidacy after he secured the Republican presidential nomination in 2016.

Teaching was an initial career goal

McMahon served on the Connecticut Board of Education for a year starting in 2009. She told lawmakers at the time that she had a lifelong interest in education and once planned to become a teacher, a goal that fell aside after her marriage.

She also spent years on the board of trustees for Sacred Heart University in Connecticut.

McMahon is seen as a relative unknown in education circles, though she has expressed support for charter schools and school choice.

McMahon was part of Trump’s first presidency

A month after defeating Hillary Clinton, Trump chose McMahon as leader of the Small Business Administration. The agency gives loans and disaster relief to companies and entrepreneurs, and it monitors government officials’ compliance with contract laws.

When McMahon was chosen, she was praised by Blumenthal and Murphy, the two Connecticut Democrats who defeated her in Senate campaigns. Blumenthal called her “a person of serious accomplishment and ability,” while Murphy said she was a “talented and experienced businessperson.”

Unlike other members of Trump’s first administration, McMahon was not shadowed by scandal or controversy. She frequently promoted his trade and tax policies.

“She has been a superstar,” Trump said when she left the administration in 2019. “The fact is, I’ve known her for a long time. I knew she was good, but I didn’t know she was that good.”

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She kept supporting Trump after leaving the administration

McMahon didn’t leave Trump’s orbit. She chaired America First Action, a super PAC that backed Trump’s reelection campaign in 2020. He lost to Democrat Joe Biden, and McMahon helped start the America First Policy Institute to continue advocating for Trump’s agenda and prepare for a potential return to the White House.

When Trump ran for president this year, McMahon was the co-chair of his transition team along with Howard Lutnick, the chief executive of financial services company Cantor Fitzgerald. As part of that role, McMahon has been helping to plan Trump’s new administration.

Once he takes office, perhaps McMahon’s biggest task will be to eliminate the agency she was hired to oversee. Trump has promised to close the Education Department and return much of its powers to states. Trump has not explained how he would close the agency, which was created by Congress in 1979 and would likely require action from Congress to dismantle.

The first lady of Brazil turned heads when she dropped an f-bomb directed at Tesla CEO Elon Musk during an official event over the weekend.

At the time, Brazil’s first lady, Janja Lula da Silva, was speaking about misinformation on social media during a pre-G20 social event on Saturday. The G20 summit began on Monday in Rio de Janeiro.

Lula, who is married to Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, stopped mid-speech when she heard a ship’s horn blaring in the distance.

“I think it’s Elon Musk,” the first lady joked in Portuguese. “I’m not afraid of you, by the way.”

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“F–k you, Elon Musk,” Lula added in English, prompting cheers from the audience.

The clip, which was posted on X, drew the attention of Musk, who responded with laughing emojis.

“They will lose the next election,” the entrepreneur wrote.

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Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan and his wife, Emine Erdoğan, are welcomed by Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva and his wife, Janja Lulu da Silva, as they pose for a photo during the G20 Leaders Summit in Rio de Janeiro on Nov. 17, 2024. (Turkish Presidency/Handout/Anadolu via Getty Images)

Brazil banned X in September, prompting outrage across the world. Brazilian Supreme Court’s Justice Alexandre de Moraes imposed the ban, citing misinformation on X, which the judge felt was not adequately moderated on the platform.

The country lifted the ban a month later, and de Moraes wrote that the decision “was conditioned, solely, on [X’s] full compliance with Brazilian laws and absolute observance of the Judiciary’s decisions, out of respect for national sovereignty.”

“X is proud to return to Brazil,” X said in a statement at the time. “Giving tens of millions of Brazilians access to our indispensable platform was paramount throughout this entire process. We will continue to defend freedom of speech, within the boundaries of the law, everywhere we operate.”

Janja Lula da Silva speaks to supporters during a gathering with artists, politicians and other personalities one week before the presidential elections at Auditório Celso Furtado on Sept. 26, 2022, in São Paulo, Brazil. (Alexandre Schneider/Getty Images)

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The Brazilian first lady’s joke took place two days before the G20 summit officially began. President Biden was present at the summit, though he did not appear during the annual family photo with fellow world leaders and missed the photo-op “for logistical reasons,” the White House said.

Reuters and the Associated Press contributed to this report.