A legacy of war - U.N. clears thousands of explosives in Iraq


  • World
  • Thursday, 07 Feb 2019

FILE PHOTO: A woman walks next to damaged shops in the Old City of Mosul, Iraq February 2, 2019. REUTERS/Khalid al-Mousily/File Photo

GENEVA (Reuters) - The United Nations cleared almost 17,000 bombs, suicide belts and other explosive hazards in Iraq last year and the dangerous work of sifting through the debris of war - 7.6 million tonnes in Mosul alone - will take many years, U.N. experts said on Thursday.

There are 100,000 damaged buildings in the country that could harbour explosive hazards such as improvised explosive devices (IEDs) left by retreating Islamic State (ISIS) fighters, said Pehr Lodhammar, head of the U.N. Mine Action Service (UNMAS) in Iraq.

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