Al Qa'qaa (original) (raw)

The Al Qa'qaa' State Establishment (Arabic: القعقاع al-Qa’qā’; also Romanized al Qa Qaa, al Qa'qa) was a massive weapons facility 48 kilometres (30 miles) south of Baghdad. It is near to the towns of Yusifiyah and Iskandariya at the geographic coordinates 33°0′54″N 44°13′12″E / 33.01500°N 44.22000°E. Covering an area of over 28 km² (10.8 mi²), the site comprises 116 separate factories and over 1,100 structures of various kinds. It is now disused and many of the buildings have been destroyed by bombing, looting and accidental explosions. In October 2004, the facility became the centre of international attention after a UN agency reported hundreds of tonnes of stored explosives "missing" (see Al Qa'qaa high explosives controversy).