BEIRUT, LEBANON (6:00 P.M.) – On Monday, the Iraqi Naval Command announced that a mine attached to the tanker (POLA) had been neutralized, after they removed it from the hull of the tanker the day prior.
In a statement shared by Sputnik Arabic, the Iraqi Naval Command said that the neutralization of the mine was done without causing any losses or damages.
The prominent Iraqi economist, Saleh Al-Hamash, said in a statement to Sputnik about the marine mine and the losses that it might cause if it exploded before it was neutralized by the security forces in a qualitative operation, saying:
“Up till this moment, the Iraqi government did not reveal where this mine came from, and it was supposed to study, examine, and reveal its origin and manufacture from whichever side it came, that the war industry and mines are known for explosives and military agencies and it was possible to request international assistance in determining the manufacture of mines, but the government so far has kep itt secret. ”
Financial losses
Al-Hamash said that the mine was targeting the Umm Qasr port, which is Iraq’s only port in the Gulf and key economic site.
He explained that this mine almost caused great losses, some of them international, because there are international ships that transport goods and commodities, and goods worth billions of dollars.
Al-Hamash revealed that the port deals with about $25 billion annually, the value of Iraq’s import, most of which is 60 to 70%, is through the ports, with the exception of the border crossings with Iran and Turkey, which do not exceed approximately $20 billion in trade exchange.
A colossal disaster
Al-Hamash said that the mine was targeting the Iraqi economy, and if it exploded, it would have caused a tremendous disaster and Iraq cannot bear any economic shock or damage.
He added if it exploded, it would have affected the port’s reputation globally and international companies would not enter the port again.
