Removing mines to make families safe in Kosovo

Two years ago, we told you the story of Tahire, Basri, and their six children.

The family returned to their home on the outskirts of Komogllavë village in Western Kosovo soon after the conflict ended, and they were met with an entirely new reality. They found cluster bombs in the woods around their home, and their neighbor lost an arm in a cluster munition accident.

Basri, 57, is a farmer by profession and one of the many residents of Komogllavë who have been denied the right to use their land due to the presence of cluster submunitions. Together, with his wife Tahire, they raised their six children with difficulty and fear. Basri said, ‘Due to the impossibility of using our fertile lands, we had great losses. We always felt isolated, we did not dare to take risks, we always kept the children close to us due to insecurity, it was dangerous to move in this area, there were accidents. Everything changed as soon as The HALO Trust came to conduct clearance.’

We are excited to announce that in 2021, HALO finished clearing all of Basri’s family’s land. He told us what this means for him and his family, 'Now that my land has been cleared, life has changed for good. I immediately started cutting trees and from selling them I am providing income to feed my family, and I am using the field to plant various vegetables. Once I have enough money, I plan to start building a new house on the land HALO cleared.” 

Thanks to our supporters, in the village of Komogllavë alone, HALO has cleared more than 139 acres and has found and destroyed 53 submunitions.

Basri thanked HALO’s team and told us: ‘Despite the material benefits, the best and most important part is that we have gained security, and we are no longer afraid to carry out our activities, and our children live free now.’ 

Everyday, the generosity and compassion of our supporters is transforming lives. Basri, Tahire, and their family are just one example of this. Thank you!