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Cover Story

Cover Story - Spanish Version

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Comprehension Quiz

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A Pledge to End Land Mines

More than 120 countries made a lifesaving promise last week: to rid the world of land mines. World leaders gathered in Ottawa, Canada, to sign a treaty banning the underground weapons. They also pledged to help victims of land mines, which kill or hurt 26,000 people a year.

Jody Williams, who shared this year's Nobel Peace Prize with her anti-land mine organization, spoke to the leaders, citizens and victims who attended the signing ceremony. "The tide of history has changed," she said. The countries that joined the ban "are the new superpower."

Although there was cause for celebration, there was also disappointment. Some powerful nations, including Russia, China and the U.S, refused to sign the treaty. But even these countries sent observers to Ottawa and took part in talks on removing mines.

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