Scorched landscapes across Europe have exposed a potentially lethal threat lurking underground.
Rusted bombs and mines from the First and Second World Wars are now endangering emergency crews responding to wildfires across the continent.
High heat has caused several weapons to explode in France, Belgium, Germany and the Netherlands. In the Dutch province of Limburg, a bomb disposal team was called out to inspect woodland near the site of heavy 1944 combat threatened by flames.
Read more…
Source: Independent
Sign up for the Counter-IED Report Newsletters
The latest news and insights delivered right to your inbox
Related:
- Ukraine: Anti-tank mines from downed Russian drone destroyed in Sumy region
November 1, 2025
Police bomb disposal experts in the Sumy region destroyed anti-tank mines that were attached to a downed Russian drone. According to Ukrinform, the Sumy region police reported this on Telegram. “The Ukrainian Defense Forces shot down an enemy attack drone carrying cassettes with anti-tank mines. The aircraft crashed in a field in the Sumy district. During ...
- Spain: One soldier dead and another injured after explosion at the Álvarez de Sotomayor army base in Almeria
October 31, 2025
Private Daniel Ruiz Mateo, assigned to the Command of the ‘Álvarez de Sotomayor’ Manoeuvring and Shooting Range, in Viator (Almeria), died this Friday, 31 October, after an explosion occurred at the military facilities at around 11.00 am. Private Alejandro Carvajal Povedano, of the same unit, has been injured and has been transferred to a hospital where ...
- Ukraine: Explosion at Ukrposhta sorting center in Kyiv, police detain suspect
October 31, 2025
Police have detained a man involved in the explosion at one of the sorting centers of Ukrposhta, Ukraine`s National Post, in the Solomianskyi district on October 30. The suspect is a 40-year-old resident of Ternopil who attempted to send ammunition as a souvenir. Police recalled that on the evening of October 30, an explosion occurred at ...
- Ireland: Arrest made over anthrax hoax targeting associate of news site’s editor
October 29, 2025
Gardai have arrested a man over an anthrax hoax aimed at an associate of the editor of Ireland’s leading conservative news site. The Irish Mirror reports that gardai believe the woman who was the victim of the hoax sent to a Co Limerick school earlier this month was targeted because of her connection to John McGuirk, ...
- UK: Man convicted of making explosive and poisonous substances
October 28, 2025
A man who was found with a large amount of dangerous chemicals in his garden shed has been convicted of various offences linked to explosive and poisonous substances. Harry Whittaker, aged 31, was arrested on 6 May 2024 after Bedfordshire Police officers searched his home address in Caddington. Whittaker came to police attention after he was ...
- Ireland: Garda team observes Europol’s simulated counter-terrorism naval exercise
October 27, 2025
The Garda Emergency Response Unit observed a week-long simulated counter-terrorism naval exercise organised by Sweden and the EU police agency Europol. Ten member states took part in the various exercises, and three states — including Ireland — were there as observers. The exercise, codenamed ‘Trident’, was carried out in the Stockholm archipelago and was part of ...
- UK: Embassy bomb threat ‘was graffiti art’ court told
October 27, 2025
A man who left “sophisticated graffiti art” outside the US Embassy as a “gift” has denied making a hoax bomb threat. Daniel Parmenter, 44, who lives with his mother in Bayswater, west London, had left a collection of items – including an iPad with taped down firework wires – on the morning of 22 November 2024, ...
- Ukraine expects 14th aid package from Croatia soon, 15th by year end
October 27, 2025
Ukrainian Defense Minister Denys Shmyhal met in Kyiv with Croatian Deputy Prime Minister and Defense Minister Ivan Anušić, thanking him for providing 13 military aid packages worth over EUR 200 million. “We expect the 14th aid package to arrive soon and the 15th by the end of this year,” Shmyhal said on X. During the meeting, ...
- Royal Air Force Counter-CBRN Specialists Strengthen NATO Capabilities
October 25, 2025
RAF aviators from a wide range of professions are leading the charge at NATO’s premier air-focused Counter-Chemical, Biological, Radiological, and Nuclear (C-CBRN) training event, Exercise Toxic Trip. Hosted this year by the Royal Norwegian Air Force at Ørland Air Base, Norway, the exercise brings together specialists from across NATO to strengthen how we work together (interoperability) ...
- Ukraine: Four people killed, 12 others injured in explosive device detonation at railway station in Ovruch
October 24, 2025
On a platform in the town of Ovruch, Korosten district, Zhytomyr region, during a document check, a 23-year-old man detonated an explosive device: he and three other women, including a border guard, were killed, and 12 more people were injured. “An explosion occurred at about 10:50 a.m. on the platform of the railway station in the ...
- UK: Men jailed over arson attack for Russia on Ukrainian business in London
October 24, 2025
Six men have been jailed for their parts in a Russian-ordered arson attack on a London warehouse providing aid to Ukraine. The fire at industrial units in Leyton, east London, on 20 March 2024, caused £1.3m in damage. Ringleader Dylan Earl was recruited by the Wagner Group, a mercenary organisation that acts on behalf of the ...
- UK: Two men charged over mosque arson attack
October 24, 2025
Two men have been charged in connection with an arson attack on Peacehaven Mosque, according to Sussex Police. No one was injured in the fire on 4 October, though the front of the building in Phyllis Avenue and a car parked outside were damaged. Ricky Ryder, 38, of Richington Way in Seaford, and Jack Slowey, 34, ...
- UK: Evacuation after police find ‘explosive material’ in Preston
October 22, 2025
A number of houses have been evacuated in Preston after police searched a house and found “potentially explosive material”. The evacuation followed a pre-planned search warrant at a property in Cottam Avenue, in the Ingol area, at around 14:00 BST, where officers found “items of concern”. Lancashire Police said an 18-year-old man had been arrested on ...
- Russia: Woman injured by explosion of unidentified device in Stavropol
October 22, 2025
An explosion of an unidentified device has wounded a woman with shrapnel in the city of Stavropol, a source in the regional operational services told TASS quoting preliminary data. “An unidentified device exploded in the 204th block microdistrict. As a result, a woman was injured. The civilian infrastructure is not damaged,” the source said. The emergency ...
- Ukraine: Mine Action AoR Achievements January – September 2025
October 21, 2025
In the third quarter of 2025, Mine Action AoR partners in Ukraine reached over 682,700 people in 24 regions, showing a continued increase in coverage compared to the previous quarter. The highest activity was again recorded in the eastern and southern regions, reflecting the current humanitarian needs in areas affected by hostilities. During this period, 630,898 ...