Posted at cnn.com
DOHA, Qatar (CNN) -- A coalition team of Australian and British navy divers aided by specially-trained dolphins have completed work to clear mines from sea lanes around the Iraqi port of Umm Qasr, opening the way for humanitarian aid shipments, military officials say.
The first shipment of much-needed food and medical aid is expected to dock in the port as early as Thursday.
The two dolphins aiding the mine-clearing effort came from a U.S. Navy facility in San Diego, California and were flown into Umm Qasr by helicopter earlier this week.
Their handlers say they have been trained using their natural sonar abilities to locate and mark submerged mines.
The dolphins, Atlantic bottle-noses named Makai and Tacoma, carry fin-mounted sensors which record their response to underwater targets enabling their handlers to pinpoint the location of suspected mines.
Officials say the dolphins are taught to keep a safe distance from the mines and face little risk in carrying out their duties.
Umm Qasr is Iraq's only deepwater seaport and, until it was closed by the threat of war, was the main entry point for food and other aid under the United Nation's "Oil For Food" program.
An estimated two-thirds of Iraqis relied on the food delivered under the U.N. deal for their daily needs.
Amid warnings of a looming humanitarian crisis, coalition forces are under pressure to deliver on promises from U.S. President George W. Bush to provide "massive amounts" of aid to the Iraqi people. (Aid shipments)
On Wednesday seven aid trucks arrived in Umm Qasr bringing with them about 12 tons of food, medical supplies and other goods.
The trucks, which had been held up at the Kuwaiti border, were finally allowed to cross into Iraq Wednesday after coalition forces confirmed they had secured the city.
They are expected to be followed as early as Thursday by the arrival of Britain's H.M.S. Sir Galahad, carrying tons of items such as food, blankets, clean water, medicine and plastic sheeting.
The shipment will be the first crucial step toward transforming what has become a battlefield back into a working port.
However, aid agencies say that with war likely to drag on for several weeks if not months, coalition forces will have to work extremely quickly to open aid routes or face a humanitarian crisis affecting hundreds of thousands of people.
© 2003 Cable News Network LP, LLLP.
Reprinted from
http://edition.cnn.com/2003/WORLD/meast/03/26/sprj.irq.ummqasr/index.html
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