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The Guardian - UK
The Guardian - UK
World
Amy Hawkins in Kharkiv region. Photographs by Julia Kochetova

Ukraine is littered with landmines on a scale last seen in Vietnam. How can they be removed?

A person in protective gear crouches in a field.
A Halo Trust deminer working in a field. Photograph: Julia Kochetova/The Guardian

Crouched over on her hands and knees in a field of weeds, Olena Kabanova is digging into the ground. With a shovel and a steady hand, the 58-year-old digs out a neat square around the spot where a mine detector has sensed a suspicious object.

Four years ago, this field in eastern Ukraine was occupied by Russian soldiers. Now back under Ukrainian control, it is littered with landmines. Civilians such as Kabanova are trying to make the land usable again.

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