News

Covid hospital fire: 82 killed by exploding oxygen tank

Published

5 years ago

April 26, 2021

An Iraqi covid hospital fire has killed at least 82 people and left 110 injured.

The fire was caused by an exploding oxygen tank at Ibn Khatib hospital in Iraq’s capital city, Baghdad.

About “30 patients were in the intensive care unit”, which was reserved for the most severe cases of Covid, a hospital source told the AFP news agency.

Emergency service officials said many patients died when they were taken off oxygen machines to be evacuated, while others were suffocated by smoke.

A fire that ravaged a Covid-19 hospital in Iraq’s capital Bagdad has left at least 82 people dead and 110 injured pic.twitter.com/XAjjPmoYqt

— TRT World (@trtworld) April 25, 2021

The Iraqi Prime Minister suspended the health minister over the fire.

The Iraqi PM referred the health minister to authorities for investigation.

The head of Iraq’s Civil Defence, Gen Kadhim Bohan, said the fire had broken out in the hospital’s intensive-care unit.

In a statement, the government’s human rights commission said the incident was “a crime against patients exhausted by Covid-19”.

“Once the fire started somebody needed to put the auto central pipes off, which means basically cutting the oxygen from those who need it most,” Halla Sarraf, the director of Iraqi Health Access, a non-governmental organisation, told the BBC.

The fire adds strain as Iraq passes the one-million mark of Covid infections this week.

Iraq’s hospitals have been pushed to the limit during the coronavirus pandemic, adding to the strains wrought by years of war, neglect and corruption.

Covid infections have been rising steeply since February in Iraq, and the total passed the one-million mark this week.

The health ministry has recorded 1,025,288 cases and 15,217 deaths since the pandemic began.

The country launched its vaccination campaign last month, and has received nearly 650,000 doses, most of which have come from Covax, a global programme for sharing jabs.

News

LIVE: U.S. and Israel launch war on Iran

U.S. and Israel escalate conflict with Iran, heightening regional war fears for the second time in eight months.

Published

1 hour ago

March 4, 2026

ticker NEWS

U.S. and Israel escalate conflict with Iran, heightening regional war fears for the second time in eight months.

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U.S. and Israel strike Iran, escalating war fears and risking wider regional conflict for the second time in eight months

News

Trump claims Iran military neutralised as Strait Of Hormuz tensions surge

Trump claims Iran’s military largely neutralized; tensions rise with attacks threatening air travel and oil shipping.

Published

3 hours ago

March 4, 2026

Harvey Vargas

Trump claims Iran’s military largely neutralized; tensions rise with attacks threatening air travel and oil shipping.

President Trump says Iran’s military capability has been largely neutralised, including its navy and air force, as the conflict in the Middle East intensifies. Iranian attacks have threatened commercial air travel and oil shipping through the Strait of Hormuz, raising fears of wider economic fallout.

The U.S. Embassy in Riyadh has faced two attacks, while Gulf states worked to intercept further Iranian strikes. Officials report six U.S. troops killed and more than 700 deaths inside Iran as the exchange of fire escalates.

With global markets watching closely, the region remains on edge as military and diplomatic tensions show no signs of easing.

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News

Airlines face disruptions that surpass previous Middle East conflicts

Published

1 day ago

March 3, 2026

Ahron Young

What’s happening in the Middle East?

Trump says U.S. strikes could last four to five weeks and described the operation as the last best chance to act, while Secretary of State Marco Rubio warns the hardest hits are yet to come
Six U.S. service members have been killed, additional American forces are being deployed to the region, and the White House says nine Iranian naval ships have been destroyed
Iran says it sees no limit to its right to self defence and will not negotiate, as missile and drone attacks continue across Israel, Lebanon and Gulf states
More than 500 Iranians have been killed in U.S. and Israeli strikes, with further deaths reported in Lebanon, Israel and the UAE
Shipping, aviation and energy markets have been severely disrupted, more than 11,000 flights have been cancelled, Gulf stock markets have closed temporarily, and oil and gas prices have surged amid Strait of Hormuz fears