Russia Still Killing Afghans

Last year 2,100 Afghan civilians were killed – 60% by Taliban bombs and death squads, 10% by other forces, and 30% by left behind Russian made land mines and explosives Since the Russians pulled out of Afghanistan about 370,000 mines and other explosive devises have been disposed of. Over 90 percent of these items are anti-personnel mines, most of them of Russian manufacture. The demining effort continues, most of it paid for by the United States.

At the height of the Russian invasion its forces fashioned brightly colored dolls from unstable plastic explosive and dropped them frozen around villages at night. When the Sun rose the next day the “toys” thawed and became lethal to the small children who found them. Insidiously the charges were designed to maim and disfigure the children terrorizing their parents and families.