safe in the back" - a dangerous error.
Imagine the situation: next to a destroyed building, a curved rectangular body was noticed, similar to a targeted mine. Someone recognizes a familiar shape and reassures the others: "She's looking the other way. They won't come to us from behind."
Here the direction of the primary fragmentation flow is taken as the entire hazard boundary. These are different things.
Let's look at the example of the American M18A1 Claymore. This is not a new development: the product was included in the official lists of military assistance to the enemy as early as 2022. But the mistake in understanding its operation is quite relevant.
With Claymore, the primary flow of ready-made destructive elements is directed primarily forward. However, the direction of this flow does not mean that the remaining consequences of the explosion are also limited to the front side only.
In addition to the main damaging elements, there is a blast wave effect. There are also secondary harmful objects - surrounding debris and particles activated by the explosion. They do not have to follow the direction of the main flow.
The official M18A1 manual addresses the rear and side risks separately. This is not an assumption about an unknown change, but a warning for a standard product.
Important difference: The primary fragmentation flow pattern is not a pattern of safe zones around the mine. Even a correctly determined direction of the body does not provide a basis for approaching from the opposite side.
At the same time, it is wrong to go to the other extreme and claim that the action is the same in all directions. It changes. But it does not follow that an unexamined find has a side from which it is permissible to approach.
The practical conclusion is simple: don't go around the object to look for its "back", don't get close to read the markings and don't try to turn the body. Warn others and convey to the experts the location and signs that have already been observed - without independently examining the finding.