In most cases land mines remain active, and thus deadly, for many years. They are often called hidden killers, weapons of mass destruction in slow motion, or the soldier that never sleeps. Land mines come in different shapes, sizes, and colors. There are at least 350 types of land mines currently in use. They are light weight and small enough to be easily handled by children.
Land mines are nondiscriminatory.
Anything or anyone that detonates a mine becomes its victim. They kill both enemy and ally. Mines that were planted decades ago in warfare now claim the lives of civilians, perhaps the combatants children and grandchildren. The over 100 million land mines that litter earth are in some 60 countries. The greatest concentration of mines has been in Africa and Asia, but an increasing number are being laid in Central and Eastern Europe, particularly in the former Yugoslavia.