Tens of thousands of Iraqis have become victims of explosive devices following decades of wars and fighting in the country. Many of them have lost body parts, and find it difficult to adapt to society. The situation has worsened following three years of fighting against Islamic State militants. In today's episode of Iraq in Recovery, our reporter Meng Qingsheng has more on the work of Red Cross in Erbil.

It's another day of training for Ali to walk again. He lost both legs while returning to his hometown in Anbar Province.

ALI AYED ATTIEH PATIENT FROM ANBAR PROVINCE "I was displaced in Erbil. We were told that the displaced should return to their hometowns, since they had been 'liberated'. I went back to the town of Ramadi to see my house. When I arrived, I saw my house was destroyed. As soon as I walked through the door, there was a big explosion. I had stepped on an explosive device."

Due to fighting against ISIL militants to retake Mosul, this rehab center saw an increased number of patients in 2017, nearly six thousand for the whole year. Many of them were displaced people living in relief camps, while there were also refugees coming from Syria.

SROOD SUAD NAFIE, MANAGER ICRC ERBIL PHYSICAL REHABILITATION CENTER "Actually, we are now the only active center in the whole lot of Iraq, so people from other governorate like Kirku, like Nineveh. We are the only center, for the time being who can provide physical rehabilitation services."

MENG QINGSHENG "The ortho center has received about eight thousand amputees since it was launched in 1996. More than 60 percent of the cases are conflict-related, mostly involving land mines or mortar attacks. As the demand remains high, patients have to wait at least ten weeks to be seen."

Its workshop produces two types of devices: prosthetics, replacing a missing body part; and orthotics, assisting a weak body part. They are provided for free to registered patients, the number of which hit over 12 thousand since it was established.

GHASSAN HUSNI ALI, P&O TEAM LEADER ICRC ERBIL PHYSICAL REHABILITATION CENTER "We do use polypropylene materials, while most of the parts are made of polypropylene, so it's lighter, it's more available in other countries. It is cheap in price, and you can solve a lot of problems in it, so you can save many patients with the same technology."

It's a painful process for many patients to adapt to new limbs. Extensive alignment specifications are made until they fit perfectly. Patients first learn to stand, walk and eventually use stairs.

ALI AYED ATTIEH PATIENT FROM ANBAR PROVINCE "I started feeling better at both the physical and psychological level. Now I'm progressively learning to walk again. Despite the fact that I can walk now with my prosthetic legs, I cannot work. This is what makes my life difficult."

It may be difficult for Ali to find a job and recover his lost home within a short period of time. But, here at the rehab center, he has got a chance to walk again. Meng Qingsheng, CGTN, Erbil.