Young Afghan brothers develop reputation for fixing firearms

BALKH, Afghanistan -- Most of the guns are older than the boys.

But those in need of an AK-47 repair don't seem to mind that the oldest gunsmith in the shop doesn't yet shave and the most junior partner still has his baby teeth.

Warlords, militiamen and average gun-toting Afghans keep business brisk for the four young brothers, who are expanding their reputation as the place to turn for repairing or rebuilding the AK-47 rifle that is the cornerstone of the Afghan arsenal.

"If it's broken, we can fix it," said the eldest brother, 17-year-old Mohammad Arif, with the confidence of a veteran of Balhk's bazaar, about 12 miles from the northern city of Mazar-e-Sharif.

In fact, he is.

Make money, live in peace

The brothers -- including 15-year-old Zarif, 12-year-old Nazar and Janagha, 7 -- have been tinkering with firearms since they were old enough to toddle into the gritty workshop. They learned every bolt and screw of an AK-47 from their older brother, who was gunned down by the same weapon last year in a long-running dispute with a relative.

The boys claim they don't know the cause of the blood feud. It seems best not to ask too many questions in a nation with no working justice system and at least one weapon in nearly every home.

"We just want to do our jobs, make some money, live in peace," said Zarif, who goes by one name as do all his siblings except his oldest brother.

But do they ever contemplate the contradiction between hoping for a quiet adulthood and keeping automatic weapons in working order? The answer: "no" times four. It's hard to think about morality when you are hungry.

When the Taliban was in power, the brothers fixed their guns. Now, they take the business of the new power brokers.

"We know how to fix guns. This is our job," said Mohammad Arif. "We need to eat."

"And I like cookies," said the smallest brother, Janagha, during their lunch break in a corner of the workshop.

Small fingers help

Hooks on the walls hold every conceivable fragment of an AK-47, also known as a Kalashnikov after its Russian designer: barrels, firing mechanisms, wooden butts. The work bench is a jumble of screws, springs and levers.

There is no electricity. All the drilling, filing and meticulous fitting is done by hand.

"It really helps to have small fingers," said a cousin, Kamil Tavaqol, 25, who stopped by to file the wooden stock of an AK-47 he was refurbishing for a friend.

Repairing an AK-47 costs about 600,000 Afghanis, or about $10.

The only competition in town is a mechanic shop nearby that fixes everything from weapons to sewing machines and alarm clocks.

"We get some guns to fix," said the owner, Mohammad Karim. "But lots of business goes to the boys. What can I say? The boys are good."