10 million landmines

Brave women in Western Sahara are demining a terrifying maze of landmines ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌  ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌  ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌  ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌  ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌  ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌  ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌  ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌  ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌   [A photo of women demining a minefield in Western Sahara.]( {NAME}, A maze of 10 million landmines lurks beneath a deadly stretch of land in Western Sahara. It’s the longest minefield in the world, and it’s killing one person nearly every single week. The Sahrawi community has for decades been forced to live on this treacherous land, built by years of armed conflict – but now that could change. A brave group of local women are hard at work demining the area, helping families of those who’ve been killed or injured, and training the community on how to stay safe. It’s incredibly dangerous, life-saving work. But in just a few years, they’ve trained nearly 10,000 people. And now there’s a way we can help. They’re operating on a shoestring budget, but if enough of us chip in, we can help them buy a vehicle so they can reach more families and fund their continued efforts to demine the area – can you help? [Donate $3]( another amount]( The “Berm” is a massive sand wall built by Morocco shortly after its forces occupied Western Sahara in 1975. It spans 2,700 km from Mauritania through Western Sahara to Morocco, isolating the Sahrawi people. Now, the area is believed to have the densest landmine contamination in the world. 2,500 unsuspecting people have been killed by these cruel weapons of war. And the Saharawi community, caught up in decades of territorial struggle over Western Sahara, has to live in terror. The Saharawi Mine Action Team works tirelessly to keep their community safe. Four of its staff are former deminers, specially trained by international operators to find and remove landmines. The team also comes to the aid of mine victims and their families – helping 84 families whose lives were ripped apart by an unexpected run-in with a landmine. The sheer number of mines means that current efforts by international bodies to demine the area fall far short of what’s needed. That’s why efforts like this are so vital. Together, we can help the Team buy the vehicle they desperately need to reach their entire community – then power their work to remove more mines from the area and shine a light on what is happening in conflict zones around the globe. Too few people have even heard of the landmine crisis in Western Sahara – together, let’s show communities there that the world is watching, and wants to help. [Donate $3]( another amount]( Anything extra raised will power Ekō and our campaigns worldwide fighting for people and the planet. Thanks for all that you do, Allison and the Ekō team --------------------------------------------------------------- More information: [Demining the Sahara]( Plough, 22 August 2023. [Western Sahara’s struggle for freedom cut off by a wall]( AlJazeera, 5 June 2015.   Ekō is a worldwide movement of people like you, working together to hold corporations accountable for their actions and forge a new, sustainable path for our global economy. This email was sent to {EMAIL}. | [Unsubscribe]( Â