The U.N. cultural agency has discovered five bombs hidden within the walls of the historic al-Nouri Mosque in the city of Mosul in northern Iraq. UNESCO said in a statement Saturday that devices are a remnant of the Islamic State militant group’s rule over the area. The mosque is famous for its 12th-century leaning minaret. It was destroyed by IS in 2017 and has been a focal point of UNESCO’s restoration efforts since 2020. UNESCO said that five large-scale explosive devices designed for significant destruction were found inside the southern wall of the Prayer Hall on Tuesday.
