An explosion has killed an Australian demining expert working to clear an area of northern Iraq that Kurdish forces recaptured from the Islamic State (IS) group, his employer says.

Key points: Australian man was supervising team of deminers

Australian man was supervising team of deminers Accident occurred in Kirkuk, north of Baghdad

Accident occurred in Kirkuk, north of Baghdad Kirkuk a "dangerous zone", "littered with these kind of devices"

The accident occurred in Kirkuk, near Daquq, about 200 kilometres north of Baghdad, a senior officer with the Kurdish peshmerga forces in control of the area said.

"This morning, at around 10:00am local time, an uncontrolled explosion has tragically killed the Australian supervisor of a team of 30 national deminers during ongoing operations," said his employer, the Swiss Foundation for Mine Action (FSD), an international non-government organisation.

"It was a bomb of 7 kilograms. If a bomb of 7 kilograms explodes in your vicinity, there is not much chance of surviving the blow," said Hansjoerg Eberle, Director General of the Geneva-based foundation.

The foundation did not release the identity of the man, but said it was working with authorities in Baghdad to send the man's body back to Australia.

"We take this kind of risk, clearing unexploded bombs, mines, improvised explosive devices left behind by the Islamic State. We go in and be the first to clear the ground and allow the villagers to rebuild their lives and to rebuild their villages," Mr Eberle said.

"The gentleman was known to us as a very senior, very experienced, very safe operator. This is a complete shock to us, to his family and all who knew him.

"We are deeply concerned that it hit somehow the organisation right in the heart and I feel a lot for the family and his wife and the other family members who have now to live without him."

Tributes were published on social media by friends and colleagues.

The Australian was part of a fraternity that spans the globe, loose knit community of explosives experts whose skills are sadly always in demand.

Mr Eberle described Kirkuk as "littered with these kind of devices".

"It's certainly a very dangerous zone where the ground is lined, where the buildings are, the buildings abundant are booby trapped so we were well aware that this is a very dangerous area," Mr Eberle added.

A spokesperson for the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade said it was "aware of reports of the death of an Australian man undertaking de-mining activities with an NGO in Iraq".

"It is strongly recommended that Australians do not travel to Iraq, where DFAT's capacity to provide consular assistance is extremely limited due to the challenging security situation," the spokesperson said.



AFP/ABC