A tragic fire at the newly opened Corniche Hypermarket Mall in Kut, eastern Iraq, has resulted in the deaths of at least 61 people, with 11 still missing. The five-story building, which housed a supermarket and restaurant, had only been open for five days when the fire erupted. According to Iraq’s interior ministry, many of the victims died from suffocation, with several found trapped inside bathrooms. Fourteen bodies were so badly burned they could not be immediately identified.

Eyewitnesses and survivors described the horror as the fire spread rapidly through the structure. One man reported losing five family members who were trapped in an elevator. The blaze reportedly began on the first floor, possibly triggered by an exploding air conditioner, although investigations into the exact cause are ongoing. The fire spread quickly, overwhelming the building before many could escape.

Emergency teams managed to rescue over 45 people from the burning building, but the scale of the disaster has made it one of the deadliest fires in Iraq in recent years. Dr. Nasir al-Quraishi, who lost several family members, said they had gone to the mall to escape ongoing power outages. “An air conditioner exploded on the second floor and then the fire erupted — and we couldn’t escape,” he shared, highlighting the speed and intensity of the blaze.

In response to the tragedy, Governor Miyahi has declared three days of mourning and vowed legal action against the mall’s owner and contractor. He also called for a national reassessment of building safety standards. Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani has ordered a full investigation to uncover potential failures in safety procedures and to help prevent similar disasters in the future.

This fire is the latest in a string of deadly incidents caused by poor fire safety in Iraq. In 2023, a wedding hall fire killed over 100 people, and in 2021, more than 60 people died in a hospital blaze. These recurring tragedies have intensified public anger over weak enforcement of safety codes and the need for urgent reform to protect lives.