Disaster Response Kosovo Project #34074

Removing mines to make families safe in Kosovo

by The HALO Trust

Project Report | Feb 28, 2023
Protecting families in Kosovo

By Lisa Balestrieri | Philanthropy Officer

HALO deminer in Kosovo

Mollopolc is a village in Shtime municipality, in southeastern Kosovo bordered by the beautiful mountains of Jezerc. In this village there are a total of 250 houses with a population of 1,400 inhabitants, the majority of whom make their living on agriculture and livestock.

Arif and Mevlyde are locals from Mollopolc who live with their family of eight. During the war the family and their fellow villagers faced many challenges. And after the war, the village was left mined, threatening the lives of the residents who many say they had no choice but to use the dangerous land because they needed wood for heating and the cows had to graze.

"We were scared when we found the submunitions, but we had no other choice. I had to graze the cows because I needed food and the children were too young to work." Mevlydja also tells that after the war her children found a submunition and played with it for three days, throwing it around to each other like a ball without knowing the danger they were in. Until one day they told the adults, and the family immediately called the police.

HALO started clearance at Mollopolc in September 2021 and so far has found and destroyed 9 cluster submunitions. Each of these 9 destroyed explosives are gone forever and can never harm an adult or child.

Arif and Mevlyde's family are relieved and happy that this land is being cleared and made safe so that they can freely use the land to cut wood, and to spend time with their family on picnics. They are very grateful to The HALO Trust team and all of our donors and supporters. Thank you!

Arif and Nezire in their yard

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Oct 12, 2022
Update on Peja, Kosovo

By Lisa Balestrieri | Philanthropy Officer

Xheladin at his restaurant

Last year, we told you about The HALO Trust’s clearance work in Peja, a major city in Kosovo. The locals use the area for walks, jogs, picnics, summer housing and grazing their animals. HALO has been working in Peja since March 2020 making the land safe. Since then, HALO has cleared over 266,400 square meters so far (over 65 acres) and has destroyed 13 cluster sub-munitions.

We are so grateful to our supporters who are making our work in Kosovo possible. Every time we find and destroy a landmine or explosive, it is gone forever and will never again threaten a life.

Landmines and other dangerous explosives left behind from war not only threaten lives, but also livelihoods.

Xheladin, a local resident from Peja, has been running the family business for 17 years now. He has a family-owned Ranch resort that offers a variety of services including a restaurant with traditional food and drinks. In addition to the Alpine House Ranch Resort, there are also stables with 20 horses, 10 of which are available for riding on designated trails built by riding professionals.

Ten family members work in this family business, relying on it for their income. They own 20 horses, 100 goats, 30 cows and 15 donkeys. They regularly send the animals out to graze and fortunately so far there have been no accidents.

An adventure park is also located within this area. It is a place for recreation that includes outdoor climbing trails with three different levels of difficulty suitable for all age groups. Thirty-six different activities can take place there, including an adrenaline rush from the big swing.

Although the resort has performed well so far, many developments that the owner had planned to expand the business have been canceled due to the dangerous hazardous area that still remains.

Xheladin talked to us about how the remaining contaminated land has affected his business: ‘I wanted to expand the zip line near to the adventure area because someone had agreed to invest in it but when they realized the area was still at risk of sub-munitions, they withdrew the offer…I hope that in the future, after the area is completely cleared by the HALO teams, I will be able to develop my business and achieve the objectives I have planned.’

‘I want to thank the donors and the HALO teams for their tireless work clearing the area 100%. This is the best for everyone because this park is a national asset.’

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Jun 9, 2022
Keeping families safe in Kosovo

By Lisa Balestrieri | Development Officer

Tafil & his home that was damaged from the bombing

Devetak in Shtime Municipality, is a mountain town located in southeast Kosovo. Residents of Shtime had summer houses in the mountains and used to spend their summer seasons there, but when the war started, the whole mountain region was bombed.

Tafil, 48 years old, is from Devekak and lives with his wife Minire, his mom Hamide, and his 3 sons. Tafil remembers every detail of the bombing, because during that time he and his brother lived at their house in the mountains. ‘It was a terrifying moment. So many submunitions were dropped that it seemed as if my head was exploding, I thought I was going to die instantly,’ says Tafil.

Both brothers were dependent on livestock activities to provide for their families and had to continue to use the land to sustain their livelihoods. ‘In the early post-war years, we had no knowledge of the danger and what they looked like because we had not seen any before. There have been times during a working day in the field when I would come across submunitions. I used to collect up to 10 of them and send them to a safe place without knowing what they were,’ he added.

After a while, a translator explained to them the high risk of the explosive items. Once Tafil understood the danger, he and his family stopped handling them, but they continued to find many on their land.

The HALO team started clearance in Devetak in August 2021 and is expected to finish clearing the area this summer. This clearance will help Tafil and his family rebuild their lives, their summer home, and access their land without risking their lives. Tafil is very happy and thankful that HALO's team has started clearance and that in the future it will enable them to use their land for many other activities. He said that the moment the whole area is cleared, he wants to build a barn for his animals.

This work is only possible because of our supporters. Thank you for keeping Tafil and his family safe!

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