Iraq to gift land to families of Mosul 'martyrs'

Iraq's government will allocate plots of land the families of troops who lost their lives in the war against the Islamic State group, the Prime Minister's office said on Sunday.

Haider al-Abadi has issued a decree ordering the allocation of pieces of lands to the families of "martyrs" from all factions of the armed forces including Kurdish Peshmerga, Hashd al-Shaabi (Popular Mobilisation Units), tribal volunteers, and the Iraqi army.

 
"Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi ordered the allocation of pieces of land in the residential areas of the families of the heroes who were martyred in fighting terrorism," said Abadi's media office on Sunday.

Those disabled in the war and now unable to work will also receive land. 
 
The statement added that Abadi made the decision as an "expression of loyalty to the makers of victory who contributed to the elimination of IS in Iraq, particularly the city of Mosul."
 
The statement explained that each family will receive 200 square meters of land "in good residential areas within the municipal boundaries of the administrative units".
 
The National Council for Housing was ordered to complete the distribution of the land before November 1, 2017.
 
According to the latest figures provided by Kurdish leader Masoud Barzani on his visit to Belgium in mid-July, the Peshmerga lost 1,745 lives and sustained 10,069 injures since mid-2014.
 
Iraqi officials have not released official figures of their casualties in the war, but the armed forces are believed to have suffered heavy losses.