Old war bomb explodes killing five in Iran

Reuters: Five people were killed and 21 others injured when
a cluster-bomb left over from the 1980-1988 Iraq-Iran war exploded in the western city of Ilam, the official IRNA news agency reported on Wednesday. The bomb exploded on Tuesday night when a group of young boys playing soccer
were using it as a goal post, IRNA said. Reuters

TEHRAN – Five people were killed and 21 others injured when a cluster-bomb left over from the 1980-1988 Iraq-Iran war exploded in the western city of Ilam, the official IRNA news agency reported on Wednesday.

The bomb exploded on Tuesday night when a group of young boys playing soccer were using it as a goal post, IRNA said. Children often mistake unexploded bombs and grenades for harmless objects.

“Most of the victims were teenagers. A 60-year-old man was also killed,” said Manouchehr Cheraghi, a local police officer in the city of Ilam, some 25 miles (40 km) from the border with Iraq.

More than 40 people in Ilam province were killed by unexploded mines or shells in 2004, IRNA said.