Former Taliban fighters are now helping the world’s largest landmine-clearing charity locate bombs which they planted during the long war against coalition forces in Afghanistan.
One of the Halo Trust’s leaders has told how during a journey to investigate a roadside bomb near Kandahar, one of their convoy’s security guards unexpectedly pointed to the device and declared: “That’s one I laid.”
The guard, an ex-Taliban fighter who was working with local police, went on to point out a field where he had planted further improvised explosive devices (IEDs).
As well as this chance encounter in 2021, the Halo Trust has liaised with some Afghans who are former fighters, who would regularly offer information which helped the organisation understand military tactics.
Following the Taliban takeover of Afghanistan, the security situation has improved but it is considered to be the most repressive country in the world for women’s rights.
The Dumfriesshire-based Halo Trust has had a presence in the country since 1988 and has destroyed more than 800,000 landmines over this period.
Since fighting has died down, it is able to operate in more parts of Afghanistan and the pace of the demining work has increased.
The charity says it operates in accordance with its own values – women work among its multi-ethnic teams of Afghan citizens.
While the Halo Trust carries out mine-clearing with the permission of Afghanistan’s current rulers, the work of its 2,500 staff is not dictated by Taliban ministers.
Callum Peebles, a programme manager for the Halo Trust originally from Stirlingshire, said the charity has also had to provide assistance due to floods and landslides.
Mr Peebles told the PA news agency: “Most Talibs that I’ve spoken to have explained that the fighting is over and now what they want to do is repair Afghanistan.
“Putting aside all the political challenges and the terrible situation for women and girls, it’s clear that Halo’s work is welcome in Afghanistan and it’s remarkable how much has been possible since the takeover.”
Being “embedded” in the community helps to build trust, he added.
During two decades of war against international forces and the former Afghan government, Taliban fighters would often place IEDs around roads to target vehicles and personnel.
Recalling a journey to a town near Kandahar in November 2021, Mr Peebles said the area had earlier been the site of intense fighting.
Halo Trust staff had heard there was an IED in a drainage culvert underneath a main road and went to the scene with a local security escort.
Mr Peebles said: “We were looking at it, sort of inspecting it, to see how we’d destroy it.
“While we were looking at it, the security guard from the escort we had at the time said ‘Oh, that’s one that I laid’.
“It was incredible.
“He then proceeded to point at this nearby field and said ‘we laid them there, and over there and over there’.
“For me that was one of these extraordinary moments where you think, wow it’s very helpful these people are here and there’s been no limitation on the information we’ve been able to gather.”
The ex-Taliban fighter was working with local police rather then being an employee of the Halo Trust, but the organisation has also heard directly from those who were involved in making bombs.
Mr Peebles added: “Quite uniquely, we’ve even been able to speak to the bomb-makers themselves.
“We were able to have conversations with IED makers who would explain the logic of what they were laying, why they would lay a particular item, and where they would lay them.
“We were able to get pretty unique and valuable information.”
The Halo Trust operates in 25 of the 34 Afghan provinces.
Earlier this year, it was estimated around 60 children each month are killed or injured as a result of mines or explosives left over from decades of war in the country.
