Riyadh: Saudi Arabia received $1.2 billion (Dh4.4 billion) from the United Nations in compensation for the damage caused by the 1991 Gulf War to the environment in the Eastern Province of the Kingdom, said Prince Turki Bin Nasser Bin Abdul Aziz, head of the Presidency of Metrology and Environment Protection (PMAP).
Following his meeting with a United Nations delegation, Prince Turki said compensation was taken from the Iraqi government by the United Nations and given to the kingdom.
He added that $100 million was spent on coasts and water cleaning operations.
He noted that another $100 million was paid to local and foreign companies working on the cleaning project.
He added that the rest of the money will be spent on the completion of cleaning affected areas.
Damage
The Gulf War brought serious environmental damage to the region. The exploding and burning of several hundreds of oil wells in Kuwait also created pollution and caused damage to the shoreline and marine life and significantly affected the multimillion-dollar Saudi fisheries industry in the Eastern region.
The UN delegation was briefed on the facilities the kingdom has in regard to clearing the environmental damages of the Gulf War as well as work been completed so far in this respect.
