Removing mines to make families safe in Kosovo

I want to thank all of our generous donors for supporting our mine clearance program in Kosovo. Our deminers have been working hard clearing landmines to keep Kosovans safe. In fact, this past July 2019 our deminers in Kosovo cleared more land than any previous month! This is thanks to your support.

Your gift helps us clear landmines from communities like Nerodime – a beautiful area with picturesque forests, but with land that has not been fully utilized since the war. A community where families aren’t safe to let their children run and play.

Town administrator Nazmi Balija told HALO about how the community has struggled as a result of the aftermath of war: “Once the war ended, we thought that was it. We didn’t know that almost 20 years later we would still be haunted by the war. It’s even worse now. Living in fear during peace is much worse than living in fear during war. At least during war, that’s the norm.”

Two thirds of former community members have moved away as a result.  Nazmi is hopeful that once the land is cleared families who left will return to their homes and put the land back to productive use.

Your support saves lives. With each minefield cleared, families are able to move beyond conflict and focus on rebuilding their lives and communities without fear. Thank you for making our work possible.