Removing mines to make families safe in Kosovo

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!