Azerbaijan extends condolences to Iraq over deadly hospital fire

13 July 2021 13:10 (UTC+04:00)

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By Vafa Ismayilova

Baku has extended condolences to Baghdad over the death of over 60 Iraqis in a fire in a coronavirus isolation ward at a hospital in the city of Nasiriya.

"Deeply saddened by a deadly blaze at the Al-Hussein hospital in Nasiriya city of Iraq. Our heartfelt condolences go to the families of the victims of a fire and the people of Iraq. We stand together with the government and people of Iraq in these hard times," the Azerbaijani Foreign Ministry said on its official Twitter page on July 13.

The Iraqi state media sources put the death toll at 64, with nearly 70 others injured. The cause of the fire at the Al-Hussein hospital is unclear, but reports said it began after an oxygen tank exploded.