Across the world, women are increasingly doing what has traditionally been a man’s job – clearing landmines and unexploded bombs left over after decades of conflict.
This dangerous and highly skilled task involves painstakingly marking suspected contaminated land and then using detectors to methodically sweep the ground to find the left-over landmines, unexploded shells and other projectiles.
In the mountains of northern Iraq, Kurdish women have been an integral part of efforts to clear their country of its extensive landmine contamination for a decade now, working alongside their Arab and Yazidi colleagues. This is a part of the world that has seen multiple conflicts over the last 40 years, making it one of the most landmine-contaminated places on earth.
These unique photos of some of our female staff in Iraq were taken by feminist photographer Sane Seven, who spent time with our colleagues as part of MAG's global project, the Female Lens, in which we are documenting the work and lives of women deminers across the world.
MAG has been conducting clearance work in the heavily mine-affected north of Iraq since 1992. The scale of the country’s landmine problem is immense, with some 1,716km2 suspected or confirmed as contaminated.
For these women and their colleagues elsewhere in Iraq, their job is more than just a job. And their colleagues are more than just colleagues.
Avan, 26, is a qualified electrical engineer and has been working with MAG for three years. She is one of four Kurdish women currently working to clear landmines that have been left over from the devastating Iran-Iraq war of the 1980s.
She says: “We are all very close to each other. We are like sisters, like family. We work together all day but then we spend time with one another during our leisure time as well and with each other’s families. We look out for one another in the minefields because it’s a tough job.
“The first time I went into the minefield, I was very afraid. Who wouldn’t be? Man or woman, you’d be scared the first time. I was sure a mine would explode but our trainers and experienced colleagues taught us very well - how to be smart at our work and how to stay safe. At first my family were very worried and surprised that I would want to do work like this. It’s not a traditional role for a woman in our community. But they supported me very well and I know they are very proud.”
The MAG deminers undergo intensive training before they take their first steps into a minefield and attain internationally recognised qualifications.
Their work is physically demanding. They have to wear heavy body armour and full-face helmets and are often doing their mine-sweeping in extreme temperatures on hilly terrain.
Siham, 24, was just 15 when Isis fighters arrived at her front door, in the city of Mosul.
“I remember one day, they came to the school. They were arguing about why we weren’t wearing hijabs. We didn’t know what they wanted."
She describes the fear of seeing her classmates disappear; many of them still haven’t returned to their families. In an effort to prevent her being taken by Isis, Siham’s parents arranged for her to be married to a 27-year-old man.
One day, fighters appeared on her doorstep. Her new husband, who was about to leave to go to the mosque, was shot as he opened the door. He died in Siham’s arms.
“They killed him. My life was destroyed. I couldn’t imagine that I would stand on my feet again.”
Siham remained in Mosul for the three years Isis occupied the city, not wanting to leave due to the strict control the terror group maintained.
“They said, if you try to leave, you will be killed."
Ten years on, after slowly rebuilding her life following the liberation of her city from Isis, she now works to clear the explosives they left behind.
“We are proud to tell girls that there is nothing to say that you can’t go to work.”
Sanaria, 31, has also been a deminer for three years, having previously worked as a technician in a laboratory. Sanaria says that when she is not working in the mountains of northern Iraq, she is often playing in them.
“I have climbed most of the mountains in this region in both summer and winter conditions. Some of them are pretty tough. Part of the reason I took this job is because I love being outdoors. We live in a beautiful country and it is wonderful to be able to work in such spectacular scenery.
“We know it’s dangerous and for sure, the very first time you walk into a minefield you are nervous and a little scared. But we trust our training and the expertise and judgement of our team leaders. So quite quickly you stop becoming nervous or scared and you just focus on taking the right steps, following the proper procedures and maintaining your concentration.
“The protective equipment we wear is heavy and makes the job really difficult in the summer months, especially if we’re working on a site where there are steep inclines, but we avoid the hottest times of the day by starting at dawn and we make sure we are well hydrated and take proper rest breaks. We know that fatigue can be dangerous, not just for yourself but also for your colleagues, so looking after yourself is very important in this job.
“But then, at the end of the working day, you can feel a real sense of achievement and feel pride. You think to yourself: I found a landmine today. And that is one less landmine to kill or injure an innocent child who was not even born when this landmine was planted in the earth. That makes me happy.”
The photographs of these women were taken by Sane Seven, in collaboration with MAG, as part of the Female Lens project. See more here.
