The Askariya, or Golden, Mosque, about 65 miles north of Baghdad, will require an estimated $8.4 million to restore after being targeted in two separate terrorist attacks, on June 13 and last February, the release said.
Countries sponsoring Iraq reconstruction programs have pledged a total of more than $5 million in contributions, while the Iraqi government has undertaken to provide the remaining $3.4 million.
The project to restore one of the holiest Shiite shrines will take some 10 months to complete, and restorers are set to get down to work as soon as the security situation in Samarra improves.
The assault on the Askariya Mosque, the final resting place of two revered Shiite imams, sparked a series of protests and backlash attacks on Sunni shrines in the strife-torn country.
