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Briton killed defusing bomb in Iraq Briton is killed defusing bomb in Iraqi city of Ramadi
(about 4 hours later)
A British national working for a US company clearing ordnance in the Iraqi city of Ramadi has been killed while trying to defuse a bomb. A British explosives expert has been killed and a colleague injured while trying to dismantle an improvised explosive device in the Iraqi city of Ramadi.
The mayor of Ramadi, which is the capital of the western Anbar province and was retaken by Iraqi forces from Islamic State this year, confirmed the incident. The city was retaken by Iraqi forces from Islamic State eight months ago. The Briton is understood to have been working for the US-based company Janus Global Organisation, which was awarded a contract to clear the hundreds of IEDs and booby-traps left behind by jihadis in the city.
“A contractor of British origin was killed and another wounded as they attempted to defuse an IED [improvised explosive device] in the Malaab neighbourhood,” Ibrahim al-Osej said. The nationality of the wounded contractor was not immediately known. The Foreign Office said in a statement: “We are in contact with the employer of a British national who has died in Iraq and have offered our support at this difficult time.” There was no immediate response from Janus.
A British embassy spokesperson said: “We’ve just been made aware that there has been a British national killed in Ramadi.” Ibrahim al-Osej, mayor of Ramadi, which is the capital of the western Anbar province, confirmed the incident, saying: “A contractor of British origin was killed and another wounded as they attempted to defuse an IED in the Malaab neighbourhood.”
The US company Janus holds a contract to clear thousands of IEDs and booby-traps left behind by jihadis in Ramadi. Janus would not immediately comment on the contractor’s death. Iraqi forces, backed by US-led coalition airstrikes, retook Ramadi in December after a battle that led the population to flee and left the city in ruins. Mine-clearing operations must be completed before the city’s residents can return and reconstruction can begin.
Rigging homes and planting bombs on roads was a key way in which Isis defended the city, about 60 miles (100km) west of Baghdad.
Iraqi forces backed by US-led coalition airstrikes retook Ramadi six months ago after a battle that emptied the city of its population and left it in ruins.
Large-scale mine-clearing operations need to be completed before reconstruction begins and residents can start returning.