Iraq resumes digging its border with Iran to search for war victims

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[size=52]Iraq resumes digging its border with Iran to search for war victims[/size]

[size=45]After digging stopped in October of last year 2023, as a result of “running out of memory,” and the lack of clarity regarding the locations of the battles that took place 35 years ago on the Iraqi-Iranian border, Iraq is preparing to resume digging in search of the remains of missing persons, whether Iraqis or Iranians, in 6 sites. On the border strip of Diyala with Iran,[/size]
[size=45]These areas witnessed the fiercest battles of the 1980s, but the exchange process between the two sides is still a “losing process” for the Iraqi side, as Baghdad was able to recover only 28% of its missing soldiers from Iran, while Tehran was able to recover 94% of its missing soldiers inside Iraq.[/size]
[size=45]Last October, an informed source confirmed that the information relied upon had run out, which led to the cessation of search operations until new information was found to indicate the areas where military operations had taken place that led to the mass death of soldiers, in order to carry out digging and searching operations again.[/size]
[size=45]Yesterday, Saturday (February 10, 2024), an informed source revealed that 6 areas had been identified to search for the remains of victims of the fiercest battles of the 1980s war in eastern Iraq, based on the memory of the past 35 years.[/size]
[size=45]The source said in a press interview, “The battles of the 1980s war within the eastern Diyala border sectors with Iran identified 6 areas in order to begin the search and investigation process based on information dating back 35 years.”[/size]
[size=45]He added, “Search operations are being conducted according to plans through a central committee in the Ministry of Defense and coordination with the Iranian side in order to identify the sites where remains are believed to be located, especially since between 1983-1986 it witnessed the fiercest battles of the 1980s war, as a result of which thousands of soldiers from both sides were lost.” He pointed out that “the inference process takes place through digging within cracks that formed anchor points and headquarters in addition to the so-called no man’s land, and dozens of remains were found in recent years.”[/size]
[size=45]According to the Central Bureau of Statistics, the number of missing Iraqis in the Iran-Iraq war is more than 52,000.[/size]
[size=45]According to a statement by the official of the Committee for Missing Persons in Iran, Muhammad Bagherzadi, in July 2023, from after 2003 until mid-2023, the remains of 47,000 Iranian soldiers were received, and only the remains of 2,500 soldiers remained inside Iraq. As for the Iraqi side, it received 20,000. Soldier, and the rest now are 50,000 in Iran. While Iraq continues its search and has handed over 94% of the remains of its soldiers to Iran, according to figures announced by the Committee on Missing Persons, Iraq has only received 28% of its missing persons on the Iranian side.[/size]
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