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Gravesite

10/2006 - Our journey through the minefields continued, as we ventured to a landmine site where a traditional green flag marked the graves of Afghan martyrs. A horror was explained to me that defied any haunting Halloween tale every told to me in my wildest nightmare. The Afghan deminer had come upon another landmine site. The gravesites where families visit to honor their dead were deliberately mined in the areas surrounding the bodies that were laid to rest. An APM landmine was found, and must be immediately removed. This time, we were properly advised to hike to the highest mountain and observe the detonation. Before I left, I stopped to say a silent prayer for the body of the mother, father, or child that was laid to rest in peace after surviving the violent wars that robbed Afghanistan.

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The unspoken truth is that the body laying in rest would have the bones blown up in the blast, yet this was a viable alternative to losing the life of a local child who may take wayward footsteps to catch a ball which wandered onto this dangerous site. So, I bowed my head and walked to the top of the mountain.

The dynamite was set on top of the landmine and the fuse was lit. I sat next to the demining coordinator amidst this panoramic valley site. His black walkie-talkie communicated to the deminer below to begin the process. He must be quick, as his life depended on the moment. 2 minutes. 45 seconds. 10 seconds, 5 seconds, 4,3,2,1. BOOM! The blast shook the earth beneath my feet and I accidently knocked the camera out of Shamim's hand! The impact of this small device no larger than a coffee saucer had shaken the earth from a distance ...another one bites the dust.

 

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