Sean Moorhouse
Sean Moorhouse is an ex-British Army soldier whose introduction to the aid world came in the aftermath of the Rwandan genocide. He has worked in mine action jobs in Afghanistan, Angola, Cambodia, Colombia, Democratic Republic of Congo, Iraq, Jordan, Kosovo, Sri Lanka and Sudan. He's currently a Technical Field Manager for MAG.
Explosives and plumbing in the middle of nowhere
Replete with too much sun, lots of sand and countless flies, Kouba Olanga would make a perfect setting for the next film version of Beau Geste. Situated in the Chadian portion of the Sahara Desert and literally in the middle of nowhere, Kouba Olanga is the last water point for at least 300 kilometres in all directions. This makes it a vital - in the strictest sense of the word - stopping-off point for the countless camel trains that plod their way across this part of the Sahara. ...
Juggling footballs and hand grenades in Congo
Somewhere in the vast sea of elephant grass that makes up Katanga province, in Democratic Republic of Congo, lies the village of Cantonnier. Like all of the other villages in the region, it's nothing more than a long string of mud huts straddling one of the very few roads. "Roads" being a rather euphemistic term for the spine-shattering stretches of mud - in the rainy season - or dust - in the dry season - that connect these remote villages. The local chief of Cantonnier had passed a message down the "road" to say that his son had found some kind of explosive device in the village. The chief was afraid that other children wouldn't be able to resist playing with it. Could I come urgently? ...
Iranian shelling uproots Iraqi Kurds
From the minefields around the village of Darband, a sound like distant thunder echoed through the steep mountain valleys. What I could actually hear was artillery fire raining down on this remote corner of the Kurdish region of Iraq. But unlike the oft-reported shells coming over the border from Turkey, these high-explosive projectiles originated in Iran. The Iranian shelling started in May 2006 and has continued sporadically ever since. ...
Yellow sticks and olive trees in mine-scarred Iraq
Last week, I walked through a minefield without wearing any protective equipment. Before you start reaching for a phone book to find me a suitable mental-health professional - and you wouldn't be the first - let me explain. The day before my apparently foolhardy act, the minefield in question had been cleared of every one of its 551 mines and 104 unexploded munitions. Every last inch of ground had been probed, prodded and scraped away. Just as importantly, not a single deminer was killed or injured in the process. ...
Which minefield should we clear next?
"So..." I panted, as I scrambled up the steep slope behind Fkry, "why are we clearing this minefield and not the other 800 or so near here?" Fkry paused and turned to face me, giving my aching legs a much-needed rest. "Have you seen what's at the bottom of the hill?" he asked. ...
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