US troops will help clear Iraqi cities of explosives left by ISIS — and it could take decades

Thomson Reuters

BAGHDAD (AP) — The top U.S. commander in Iraq says American troops will assist in the effort to locate unexploded bombs dropped there by the U.S.-led coalition.

The commander, Gen. Stephen Townsend, tells a group of reporters in Baghdad that the American military will find a way to help.

The coalition's unexploded bombs are only a small part of the problem facing Mosul and other Iraqi cities recaptured from the Islamic State group.

Militants hid explosives set to detonate with the slightest of movement. They can be almost anywhere — in a child's toy, a vacuum cleaner or an oven door.

A contracting company, Janus Global Operations, has been hired to find and remove explosive devices and unexploded bombs. Some estimates suggest it may take 25 years to clear West Mosul of explosives.

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