TUESDAY November 9, 2021: KILLING FIELDS of IRAQ' by ZUMA Press award winning photographer Daniel Carde who has covered landmine removal from Cambodia to Iraq: Ali is a local legend and hero in Iraqi Kurdistan, he's rescued 182 people from deadly minefields, cleared 104 villages, demined 540 square kilometers of land, taught landmine awareness to at least 700 schools and rendered safe more than 2.5 million landmines and unexploded ordnances, many of those he cleared as a double amputee having lost his right leg to an Italian made landmine in January 1989. Iraq is the world's most contaminated country with landmines, partly due to the mines laid by Islamic State to defend the territory it once controlled over Iraq and Syria, but also as a result of the 2003 invasion by the U.S.-led coalition, the 1991 Gulf War and the 1980-1988 Iran-Iraq war. The global casualty toll of landmines doubled in 2018 from a 2013 low due to heavy conflicts in the region and to the increased use of improvised landmines set by militant groups such as Islamic State. Welcome to: 'KILLING FIELDS of IRAQ'
© zReportage.com Story of the Week #813: TUESDAY November 9, 2021: KILLING FIELDS of IRAQ' by ZUMA Press award winning photographer Daniel Carde who has covered landmine removal from Cambodia to Iraq: Ali is a local legend and hero in Iraqi Kurdistan, he's rescued 182 people from deadly minefields, cleared 104 villages, demined 540 square kilometers of land, taught landmine awareness to at least 700 schools and rendered safe more than 2.5 million landmines and unexploded ordnances, many of those he cleared as a double amputee having lost his right leg to an Italian made landmine in January 1989. Iraq is the world's most contaminated country with landmines, partly due to the mines laid by Islamic State to defend the territory it once controlled over Iraq and Syria, but also as a result of the 2003 invasion by the U.S.-led coalition, the 1991 Gulf War and the 1980-1988 Iran-Iraq war. The global casualty toll of landmines doubled in 2018 from a 2013 low due to heavy conflicts in the region and to the increased use of improvised landmines set by militant groups such as Islamic State. Welcome to: 'KILLING FIELDS of IRAQ'

A sign warns travelers of explosives in the area, near landmine remover and local hero Hoshyar Ali's home near Halabja. Though the field is landmine free, Ali uses the warning sign to indicate he has explosives on his property.
© Daniel Carde/ZUMA Press Wire

Landmine deminer HOSHYAR ALI at his home in Biyawele Village near Halabja. Ali is a local hero. By his own account, he's rescued 182 people from minefields, cleared 104 villages, demined 540 square kilometers of land, taught landmine awareness to at least 700 schools and rendered safe more than 2.5 million landmines and unexploded ordinances, many of those he cleared as a double amputee having lost both his legs to landmines.
© Daniel Carde/ZUMA Press Wire

Landmine deminer HOSHYAR ALI holds a landmine at his home in Biyawele Village near Halabja. Iraq is the world's most contaminated country with landmines, partly due to the mines laid by Islamic State, but also as a result of the 2003 invasion by the U.S.-led coalition, the 1991 Gulf War and the 1980-1988 Iran-Iraq war.
© Daniel Carde/ZUMA Press Wire

Landmine deminer ALI HOSHYAR BYAWELAIY hands to his head as he tries to rests on his couch at his home near Halabja. Byawelaiy, after long day. Ali, has cleared at least 2,500,000 explosives, has lost both of his legs, two brothers, two cousins and another brother lost his eye due to landmine incidents.
© Daniel Carde/ZUMA Press Wire

Landmine deminer HOSHYAR ALI drives to help a farmer after receiving a request to help remove landmines from his fields. The red flag indicates his vehicle contains explosives.
© Daniel Carde/ZUMA Press Wire

Watermelons grow in a field cleared in 1994 by landmine deminer Hoshyar Ali near Hoshyar Village, in Halabja. Ali lost his left leg to an American landmine in the area, which was a minefield during the Iraq-Iran War in the 1980s. The accident happened when he cleared the area in the during the summer 1994.
© Daniel Carde/ZUMA Press Wire

Farmer PESHAWA HARES, right, and RIZGAR ALI make their way to a hidden cache of mortar shells and RPGs on Hares property in Serdera Village near Penjwen. Ali, who assists his brother landmine deminer Hoshyar Ali, examined the explosives with Hares.
© Daniel Carde/ZUMA Press Wire

A young boy from the nearby village of Penjwen examines a formerly deadly Italian Valmara 69 landmine which deminer Hoshyar Ali found and rendered safe. The landmine was an Iraq-Iran War remnant from the 1980's.
© Daniel Carde/ZUMA Press Wire

Landmine deminer RIZGAR ALI (L) shows local farmer PESHAWA HARES a mortar shell they recovered from a field on the family's farm.
© Daniel Carde/ZUMA Press Wire

Deminer HOSHYAR ALI holds a detonator removed from an Italian Valmara 69 landmine that Ali carefully recovered and rendered safe near Penjwen. A local farmer called Ali to come and clear the area after some of the farmers livestock was killed by stepping on landmines in nearby fields.
© Daniel Carde/ZUMA Press Wire

Uncovered ordinance, a mortar shell and RPG cache hidden behind a defensive wall in Serdera Village. The low wall and the explosives are Iraq-Iran War remnants.
© Daniel Carde/ZUMA Press Wire

Landmine survivor REBWAR ALI holds an Italian Valmara 69 landmine beside the hill where he survived a landmine explosion at Biyawele Village near Halabja. Ali was one of four family members either killed or wounded when a landmine, like the one he is holding, exploded on July 14, 1992. Though he survived, he lost his right knee cap, injured his left leg, and injured his head, including blinding his left eye.
© Daniel Carde/ZUMA Press Wire

RIZGAR ALI carries unexploded mortar shells he retrieved from a field at Serdera Village near Penjwen.
© Daniel Carde/ZUMA Press Wire

A villager, after waving down deminer Hoshyar Ali, greet Ali and tells him about a landmine on the villagers property. Ali remained in the vehicle and chatted with the man while Ali's brother, Rizgar, safely retrieved the landmine.
© Daniel Carde/ZUMA Press Wire

Local farmer MAHMOUD AHMED (L) greets landmine deminer HOSHYAR ALI at Hoshyari Village. The village, formally Kuri Gapla, was renamed after Ali to honor him and his commitment to clearing deadly hidden landmines from the region.
© Daniel Carde/ZUMA Press Wire

A road-sign directs drivers past a a valley that Hoshyar Ali cleared of landmines and explosives near the Iraq-Iran border. By his own account, Ali has made safe at least 540 square kilometers of land, which can now be used for growing produce, grazing livestock and building development.
© Daniel Carde/ZUMA Press Wire

A roadside sign along a road between Nalparez and Penjwen warns travelers what landmines and other unexploded ordinance in the area look like. The region still has many landmines and unexploded ordinances left from the Iran-Iraq War.
© Daniel Carde/ZUMA Press Wire

Landmines rendered safe are stored at deminer Hoshyar Ali's home in Biyawele Village, Iraqi Kurdistan. Ali a hero in the region and has cleared the local fields and villages of at least 2.5 million explosives.
© Daniel Carde/ZUMA Press Wire

DANIEL CARDE is a ZUMA Press photojournalist based in Beirut, Lebanon. Daniel work has included covering landmine removal and landmine survivors in Cambodia, landmine removal and landmine survivors, and conflict in Iraq, as well as daily assignments in the U.S. before moving to Beirut, where he's covered the Beirut Blast, the Covid-19 Pandemic, and the economic collapse. Daniel's work is represented by ZUMA Press and is available for assignments worldwide.
© DANIEL CARDE is a ZUMA Press photojournalist based in Beirut, Lebanon. Daniel work has included covering landmine removal and landmine survivors in Cambodia, landmine removal and landmine survivors, and conflict in Iraq, as well as daily assignments in the U.S. before moving to Beirut, where he's covered the Beirut Blast, the Covid-19 Pandemic, and the economic collapse. Daniel's work is represented by ZUMA Press and is available for assignments worldwide.