A selection of Elsa Buchanan’s reporting, photo essays and communications work, drawn from field assignments and collaborations across the Middle East and Sub-Saharan Africa.

Covering conflict, human rights and humanitarian issues, the work combines on-the-ground reporting with specialist analysis.

Human Impact

Stories exploring how conflict shapes daily life, from displacement and education to livelihoods, environment, and long-term recovery.

Conflict & Security

Reporting on frontlines, weapons, and military dynamics, examining how conflict is fought and sustained in complex environments.

Accountability & Rights

Investigations and reporting examining violations, legal accountability, and the human rights dimensions of conflict and crisis.

Health & Humanitarian

Reporting on healthcare, humanitarian response, and the long-term impact of conflict on communities, from emergency care to recovery and resilience.

Conflict & Security elsa buchanan Conflict & Security elsa buchanan

Staying ready: Why refresher training matters in Yemen’s evolving minefields

As Yemen's explosive threat continues to evolve, deminers face hazards that are increasingly complex and unpredictable. Drawing on exclusive access to training programmes and interviews with mine action specialists, this report explores why refresher training is essential for teams working in contaminated areas, helping them adapt to new devices, changing tactics and emerging risks in one of the world's most challenging mine action environments.

Read More
Conflict & Security elsa buchanan Conflict & Security elsa buchanan

As reports emerge of Houthi mobilisation, landmines often follow in Yemen

Drawing on exclusive access and interviews with deminers, local communities and security analysts, this report examines the link between renewed military mobilisation and the spread of landmine contamination in Yemen. As frontlines shift and tensions rise, affected communities fear that new deployments could leave behind a familiar and deadly legacy: explosive hazards that continue to threaten civilians long after the fighting has moved on.

Read More
Human Impact elsa buchanan Human Impact elsa buchanan

Yemen’s overlooked emergency: disability, access and the cost of explosive violence

For thousands of Yemenis injured by landmines and explosive remnants of war, surviving the blast is only the beginning. Through interviews with survivors and rehabilitation specialists, this report examines the barriers people with disabilities face in accessing healthcare, education, employment and public spaces, revealing an often-overlooked consequence of Yemen's long-running conflict.

Read More
Human Impact elsa buchanan Human Impact elsa buchanan

When the earth becomes a casualty: How landmines devastate Yemen’s environment

While landmines in Yemen kill and injure civilians, they are also poisoning soil, blocking access to farmland and leaving lasting scars on the environment. Through interviews with deminers, environmental specialists and affected communities, this report explores the hidden ecological consequences of contamination and the challenges facing areas struggling to recover from years of conflict.

Read More
Human Impact elsa buchanan Human Impact elsa buchanan

Mine Action in Yemen: Reaching those cut off by war, illiteracy and mistrust

Gaining rare access to communities beyond the reach of traditional awareness campaigns, this report explores how mine action teams in Yemen adapt their work for people isolated by conflict, illiteracy and deep mistrust. Through field reporting and interviews with deminers and risk education specialists, the story reveals the challenges of protecting civilians in some of the country's most vulnerable and hard-to-reach areas.

Read More
Human Impact elsa buchanan Human Impact elsa buchanan

Landmine survivors in Yemen face more than physical injuries: they face rejection, stigma and silence

For many Yemeni landmine survivors, the explosion is only the beginning of their ordeal. Drawing on interviews with survivors, psychologists and rehabilitation specialists, this report explores the social consequences of life-changing injuries, including stigma, discrimination, family rejection and the loss of employment opportunities. It reveals how survivors often face a second battle after leaving hospital: rebuilding their place within communities that frequently view disability through the lens of shame, dependency or misfortune.

Read More
Human Impact elsa buchanan Human Impact elsa buchanan

Turning the tide: How civilians hoarding weapons for personal gain are now handing over thousands of landmines

In communities affected by years of conflict, civilians once incentivised to keep weapons and explosive remnants are now voluntarily surrendering thousands of dangerous items. Drawing on exclusive access to mine action programmes in Yemen, this report explores how community engagement, trust-building and risk awareness are helping remove explosive hazards from circulation, reducing threats to civilians and supporting safer recovery.

Read More
Conflict & Security, Human Impact elsa buchanan Conflict & Security, Human Impact elsa buchanan

Fears take hold of Yemen Red Sea Coast civilians already reeling from presence of mines and IEDs as tensions escalate

With tensions rising along Yemen's Red Sea coast, civilians already living among landmines and improvised explosive devices faced growing uncertainty about what lay ahead. Based on exclusive access and interviews with affected communities, the report explores how years of contamination have transformed daily life, leaving families trapped between conflict, fear and the constant threat of explosive hazards.

Read More
Conflict & Security, Human Impact elsa buchanan Conflict & Security, Human Impact elsa buchanan

Made in Yemen: How Houthis’ use of sea mines affects fishing communities

This investigation explores the human cost of sea mines along Yemen's coastline, where fishing communities have found themselves on the front line of an invisible maritime threat. Through exclusive interviews with fishermen, coastal residents and mine action specialists, the report examines how explosive hazards at sea have disrupted livelihoods, restricted access to traditional fishing grounds and deepened economic hardship for families already struggling amid years of conflict.

Read More
Conflict & Security elsa buchanan Conflict & Security elsa buchanan

Set to kill: When booby-trapped landmines become lethal legacy in Yemen

This investigation examines the devastating legacy of booby-trapped landmines in Yemen, where explosive devices continue to kill and maim civilians years after being laid. Through survivor testimonies, field evidence and interviews with demining specialists, the report documents how improvised and victim-activated explosive hazards have transformed homes, farms, roads and everyday objects into deadly traps, leaving communities to navigate a hidden threat long after the fighting has moved elsewhere.

Read More