Kurdistan clears over 190 unexploded mines in northern Erbil
Shafaq News/ The General Directorate of Mine Action in Erbil announcedthe successful destruction of 195 unexploded landmines in the northern Erbilprovince, on Thursday.
The operation targeted the Qalandar minefield in the Mergasur district,located in the far north of the region.
A statement from the directorate confirmed the mines “were cleared by aspecialized team.”
Last September, the directorate, in collaboration with theSlovenia-based International Trust Fund (ITF), uncovered 101 Valmara-69anti-personnel mines and other explosive remnants in the Grokopia minefieldnear Bekhal in the Rawanduz district.
Iraqi Kurdistan is heavily affected by landmines and unexplodedordnance, remnants of the former Iraqi Baathist regime's policies, and theIran-Iraq War (1980-1988).
A report by the humanitarian organization "Humanity andInclusion" estimates that 8.5 million Iraqis, including many in Kurdistan,live in areas contaminated with explosive remnants of war and IEDs.
Iraq’s National Mine Action Strategic Plan (2022-2028), supported byinternational agencies, seeks to address these threats through demining effortsand victim assistance, aiming to mitigate the severe impact on localcommunities.
