It might look like an unused prop from the Star Wars films, but this giant ball has the potential to save thousands of lives.
Like a giant clump of dandelion seeds, it is designed to be blown around in the wind detonating landmines in its path.
Made simply of bamboo, iron and plastic, each one is relatively cheap to produce and can clear up to four bombs before being destroyed themselves.
Each device, called Mine Kafon, will have a GPS tracking device linked to a website to show which areas have been cleared.
They are the brainchild of Massoud Hassani, who at the age of 14 fled war-torn Afghanistan, where there are more landmines than people.
Having a blast: Each device can include a GPS tracking device to show which areas have been cleared.
Mr Hassani said he had the idea for his invention after making miniature models during his childhood.
He and his brother would make their own toys, small wind-powered cylinders which would often get blown into a minefield, where they could not get them back.
He said: ’Me and my brother Mahmud, we played every day on the fields surrounded with the highest mountains in our neighborhood.
’There was always a strong wind waving towards the mountains. While we were racing against each other, our small miniatures rolled way to fast and too far.
’Mostly they landed in areas where we were not allowed to step a foot on.
’Those areas were very dangerous because of the landmines. It was full of them. I still remember those friends that we have lost and saw them getting injured.’
He said: ’I thought "I am going to make these objects 20 times bigger and heavier".
’There are 30million landmines in Afghanistan and 26million people, so that’s more mines than people.’
The International Campaign to Ban Landmines is deeply concerned by recent claims that the Free Syrian Army (FSA) – the main armed opposition group currently fighting the Syrian government – intends to use landmines in armed conflict against the Assad regime.
On Wednesday 1 August 2012 an Al Jazeera report featured a statement from a combatant who said he was with the rebel group, and that the FSA would re-use antipersonnel mines that they have lifted from minefields laid by Syrian government troops near the Turkish border earlier this year.
“These indiscriminate weapons are far more likely to maim or kill a civilian than a combatant, which is why they’ve been internationally banned. Antipersonnel landmines must not be used by anyone, at any time, regardless of the situation,” said Kasia Derlicka, Director of the ICBL.
Since the armed conflict in Syria started, mines have been newly laid on Syria’s borders with neighboring countries.
Land Mine Treaty Won’t Be Signed By Obama Administration (2009)
The Obama administration has decided not to sign an international convention banning land mines.
State Department spokesman Ian Kelly said Tuesday that the administration recently completed a review and decided not to change the Bush-era policy.
"We decided that our land mine policy remains in effect," he said.
More than 150 countries have agreed to the Mine Ban Treaty’s provisions to end the production, use, stockpiling and trade in mines. Besides the United States, holdouts include: China, India, Pakistan, Myanmar and Russia.
RIC Note:
Other non-signatories include: Israel, Iran, Syria, Libya, Korea and Bahrain, 36 countries in all.
So, can a ball "rid the world of landmines"? It can help, but countries actively working towards peace and disarmament are MUCH more effective.
No Bank Deposits Will Be Spared from Confiscation 2013 05 18
As alert Zero Hedge readers are aware, this week the EURO Politburo is busy debating the dodgy subject of deposit "bail-ins."
The following article very succinctly explains this odious mode of fractal fractional reserve end-game chicanery.
The author encourages all of you to share it with others.
NO BANK DEPOSITS WILL BE SPARED FROM CONFISCATION
By Matthias Chang Esq, futurefastforward.com (with author’s permission)
I challenge ...
Military Says No Presidential Authorization Needed To Quell “Civil Disturbances” 2013 05 17 A recent Department of Defense instruction alters the US code applying to the military’s involvement in domestic law enforcement by allowing US troops to quell “civil disturbances” domestically without any Presidential authorization, greasing the skids for a de facto military coup in America along with the wholesale abolition of Posse Comitatus.
The instruction (embedded at the end of this article), which ...
Ancient Maya Pyramid Destroyed in Belize 2013 05 17 An archaeological group says it plans to take legal action.
Despite its small size, the Caribbean country of Belize is known for a few outstanding characteristics: a spectacular barrier reef, a teeming rain forest, and extensive Maya ruins.
It now has one fewer of those ruins.
A construction company in Belize has been scooping stone out of the major pyramid at the site ...
Ginger: A Warming Herb 2013 05 17
Ginger is an Asian herb that is particularly well known to us in the West. Over time, and with trial and error, its stimulating properties and piquant flavor have been integrated into both our herbal “materia medica” and cuisine.
Brewed as an herbal tea, ginger root is particularly helpful for those people who have underactive stomachs and difficulty producing adequate amounts ...
Australian man dead for 40 minutes revived with new CPR machine 2013 05 17 In an Australian first, doctors have used a new resuscitation technique to revive three patients who were clinically dead for up to an hour.
One of the lucky survivors was Colin Fiedler, 49, who was pronounced dead at The Alfred Hospital in Melbourne, Victoria, after suffering a heart attack, The Herald Sun reported.
Doctors brought Fieldler back to life using a U.S.-made ...
’There was always a strong wind waving towards the mountains. While we were racing against each other, our small miniatures rolled way to fast and too far.
No Bank Deposits Will Be Spared from Confiscation
Military Says No Presidential Authorization Needed To Quell “Civil Disturbances”
Ancient Maya Pyramid Destroyed in Belize
Ginger: A Warming Herb
Australian man dead for 40 minutes revived with new CPR machine