Fire tears through Baghdad COVID hospital

Dozens of people have been killed and injured in a fire at a hospital in southeastern Baghdad that was treating coronavirus victims.

The blaze at the Ibn al-Khatib Hospital in the Diyala Bridge area of the Iraqi capital occurred after an oxygen tank exploded, medical sources said.

Iraqi Prime Minister Mustafa al-Kadhimi ordered an investigation into the deadly fire and vowed to hold anyone who was negligent accountable.

Videos on social media showed firefighters trying to extinguish flames at the hospital as patients and their relatives tried to flee the building. Witnesses said people jumped out of windows to escape the blaze.

The incident sparked outrage on social media, with Iraqis angry at the government and calling for the firing of the health minister.

Iraq’s hospitals have been worn down by decades of conflict and poor investment with shortages in medicines and hospital beds.