Contamination a new threat in Iraq's Mosul

As the city of Mosul tries to recover from war, doctors are warning of a new catastrophe: infectious and water-borne diseases.

Mosul was retaken from Daesh after a nine-month long operation involving Iraqi ground troops and coalition forces providing air and artillery support. (February 24, 2018)
Reuters

Mosul was retaken from Daesh after a nine-month long operation involving Iraqi ground troops and coalition forces providing air and artillery support. (February 24, 2018)

Bits of decomposing bodies, pieces of military clothing and unexploded bombs, including unused suicide belts, are scattered across the ruins in the Maydan district, the area where Daesh militants held out the longest in Mosul.

"At the moment, the cadavers may have fallen in the river and these cadavers may dissolve and the normal intestinal content will be in the water," says a doctor in Mosul, Bithar al Jasser. 

"This water will carry the bacteria or virus or other disease. And this may lead, or specifically lead, to gastrointestinal disease."

TRT World's Soraya Lennie reports how after Daesh, residents of Mosul may have another catastrophe to deal with.

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