10 Horrific pictures of miners who risk their lives to extract rare minerals that power your iPhone

This Coltan (Columbite-tantalite) mines in a forgotten corner of the Democratic Republic of Congo fuel our 21st century lifestyle. The black tar-like mineral they are trying to harvest is the magical component that controls power-flow in your iPhone and Samsung Galaxy.

In an exclusive by Daily Mail, this miners were spotted covered head-to-foot in the ore-laden mud.

Hundreds of workers toil for 12 hours a day carrying the coltan ore on their shoulders and heads.

‘The materials that enable your smartphone to work comes from our mine,’ Jotham Uwemeye, Secretary General of the Cooperamma miners organisation, told MailOnline.

This mine is one of the few places in the world where this rare and much-sort-after mineral can be found.

Sadly, safety measures at the mine is non-existent. Accidents are common at DRC mines with seven workers killed at a small coltan excavation site last month when the walls of a poorly-supported tunnel collapsed.

First discovered by Belgian prospectors almost a century ago this mine and dozens of others like it in the DRC’s mineral-rich eastern regions, have been exploited by colonialists, dictators and war lords.

It has brought the Democratic Republic of Congo tears and war. They have not known peace since its discovery as tribal lords fight and kill each other in order to control the mines.

Also, deposits of Coltan (Columbite-tantalite) have been found in Australia, Brazil and Canada, but the majority is still mined in the DRC, which has 80 per cent of the world's coltan.

Apple say they are aware of the harm that conflict minerals have caused in the DRC and are ‘dedicated to using only conflict-free minerals in our products’.

An Apple spokeswoman added: ‘That’s why we have been working to expand the number of verified sources in this region, so that more people can earn a good living, in better conditions.’

Samsung Electronics says it supports the ban on conflict minerals.

A spokeswoman for Samsung Electronics added: ‘As a global manufacturer of consumer electronics, we understand the moral and ethical responsibility we have to our consumers and broader society.

‘We remain committed to proactively participating in conversations and actions around the world to ban the use of conflict minerals and ensure responsibly source, conflict-free products.’

Should we begin to take the phenomenon "curse of coltan" seriously as an hydra headed monster or should we just blame the greedy leaders for DRC's misfortune?

It is unclear whether things would change for the people of Democratic Republic of Congo, but one thing is sure while we click and press our smartphones, we should all know that there are people slaving and dying everyday at the heart of Africa for it.