I am the photographer who made this image of the Iraqi with the sledge-hammer.
The caption is misleading; Known colloquially as "ali-babas", from the forty thieves fame, this man was demolishing the building behind for the reinforcing steel bars inside the concrete roof and the collected bricks which he could sell. The shells have had their driving-bands removed, as they are made of copper and copper was fetching a high price in Iran at that time. A most dangerous thing to do with a dolly-hammer and cold-chisel. Most of these shells, South African made 152mm High-Explosive extended-range artillery shells & U.S. made 155mm High Explosive artillery shells, are live but without fuses and therefore relatively 'safe'. I did see some local people cooking on TNT, not to be recommended, it can go bang and of course burns very hot and with toxic fumes. The TNT for cooking had come from 'liberated' anti-tank mines, infinitely easier to prise out the explosive from. Sadly many of these shells in the photograph would have been taken by insurgents for use in IED's. That is what we get for invading a large, militarised country and not having much of a plan as to what to do afterwards. Pathetic really. You could spend a year banging one of these shells with a sledge-hammer and I guarantee that you would not split it open that way. On the other hand you might strike the shell in just the right way on the first strike and you'd be nothing more than a red-mist and a memory! I would not do it!
The caption is misleading; Known colloquially as "ali-babas", from the forty thieves fame, this man was demolishing the building behind for the reinforcing steel bars inside the concrete roof and the collected bricks which he could sell. The shells have had their driving-bands removed, as they are made of copper and copper was fetching a high price in Iran at that time. A most dangerous thing to do with a dolly-hammer and cold-chisel. Most of these shells, South African made 152mm High-Explosive extended-range artillery shells & U.S. made 155mm High Explosive artillery shells, are live but without fuses and therefore relatively 'safe'. I did see some local people cooking on TNT, not to be recommended, it can go bang and of course burns very hot and with toxic fumes. The TNT for cooking had come from 'liberated' anti-tank mines, infinitely easier to prise out the explosive from. Sadly many of these shells in the photograph would have been taken by insurgents for use in IED's. That is what we get for invading a large, militarised country and not having much of a plan as to what to do afterwards. Pathetic really. You could spend a year banging one of these shells with a sledge-hammer and I guarantee that you would not split it open that way. On the other hand you might strike the shell in just the right way on the first strike and you'd be nothing more than a red-mist and a memory! I would not do it!