Hamdaniya wedding fire survivors want honest investigation

[Anthea]

Fire Victims Transferred Abroad

The federal government of Iraq on Friday transferred three more people injured in the recent Hamdaniya fire to hospitals abroad for advanced medical treatment

"The fourth group, consisting of three victims of Al-Hamdaniya fire incident, was transferred today. They were accompanied by their relatives and a specialized medical team. This brings the total number of transferred injured individuals to 23, as their medical reports confirmed that they can travel," read a statement released by Sudani's media office today.

The Iraqi premier today sent his health affairs advisor to visit Hamdaniya fire victims who are currently receiving medical treatment in Turkey.

The federal government has sent more than two dozens of critically injured individuals from the Hamdaniya wedding hall fire abroad to receive essential medical treatment.

Last week, a tragic fire swept through a wedding venue in the Hamdaniya district of Nineveh province, resulting in a minimum of 123 confirmed fatalities, with over 200 people sustaining injuries.

Following an investigation by the federal government, it was determined that the fire was "unintentional and accidental, resulting from gross negligence." Furthermore, it was observed that the use of flammable decorations played a significant role in the rapid spread of the fire, effectively transforming the hall into a fierce inferno.

https://www.basnews.com/en/babat/825961

[Anthea]

Reporter barred from covering fire funeral

ERBIL (Kurdistan 24) – Popular Mobilization Forces (PMF) on Wednesday were barred from covering the Hamdaniya fire funeral

Masoud Warmeli, a reporter for Kurdistan 24, reported that a team of three from Kurdistan 24 attempted to cover the burial of 30 other victims of the Hamdaniya wedding hall fire, but were prevented by PMF-affiliated Rayan al-Kildani forces.

Warmeli said that after several attempts and contacts, PMF informed him that Kurdistan24's name was on the red list and that they would not allow Kurdistan 24 to cover the funerals of the Hamdaniya wedding hall fire victims.

Moreover, this is not the first time PMF – especially the Rayan al-Kildani unit – has prevented Kurdistan24 from entering Hamdaniya, as last week the same force prevented the same team from entering Hamdaniya.

The wedding hall fire broke out on Sept. 26 at 11:30 p.m., resulting in more than 100 deaths and leaving 150 injured.

Most of the injured were treated in hospitals in the Kurdistan Region. Also, Kurdistan Region Prime Minister Masrour Barzani visited Hamdaniya fire victims at Erbil Emergency Hospital and ordered three days of mourning in the Kurdistan Region.

Moreover, the Kurdistan Region Security Council in a statement on Sept. 27, announced the arrest of Sameer Sulaiman Krumi Rafo Asu, the owner of the wedding hall.

https://www.kurdistan24.net/en/story/32 ... re-funeral

[Anthea]

Wedding halls to follow safety rules

NINEVEH, Iraq - Mosul’s civil defense authorities are inspecting banquet halls to determine whether they are in compliance with safety regulations. This follows a devastating wedding fire in Hamdaniya last month, which killed over 100 people

My City hall was recently warned to follow safety rules. Following the warning, the owner was deemed by authorities to have complied with all rules.

“We have added two hoses to the hall’s fire suppression system and we have installed fire extinguisher bottles to all electricity boards. The ceiling of the hall is made of concrete rather than sandwich panels,” Mohammed Ali, the owner of the hall, told Rudaw’s Naif Ramazan.

Following the Hamdaniya deadly fire, some 150 halls have been shut down in the district due to the failure to meet safety rules. Those affiliated with the municipality have been demolished.

The Nineveh defense directorate has introduced new safety rules for wedding halls. If they fail to comply with all rules in three months’ time, the halls will face repercussions.

“After this deadline ends, we will take legal procedures against the halls if their owners continue failing to follow the rules as per the civil defense law. We have recorded 150-160 projects that have violated [safety rules],” Khalid Sarwat, head of Nineveh civil defense directorate, told Rudaw.

https://www.rudaw.net/english/middleeast/iraq/061120231

[Anthea]

Hamdaniya wedding fire survivors

call for transparent investigation

More than a month after the tragic Hamdaniya wedding inferno that claimed the lives of over 100 people and wounded hundreds more, survivors are still demanding a fair and transparent investigation against who they call "the criminals" behind the tragedy

Yashu' Elias, 69, a survivor, has 25 percent of his body burned and lost his son, daughter, and son-in-law in the blaze.

He said that he had not received adequate medical treatment while angrily demanding a transparent investigation into the deadly incident.

"We do not need any financial compensation. I do not need money. All we demand is our rights," Elias told Rudaw’s Mustafa Goran. "We want the criminal to be brought to justice. We are calling for transparent investigations."

"This is it. We do not want them to try innocent people and then declare them criminals. We do not want that."

In the massive wedding fire, 132 people lost their lives including six infants, 41 teenagers, 76 men and women, and nine elderly people.

Of 170 wounded individuals, 15 of them still receive medical treatment in neighboring Turkey.

Raad Toma is one of the wounded who needs medical checkups every 72 hours. He stayed at a hospital in Istanbul for 15 days before returning to his hometown, Hamdaniya.

His wife is in critical condition and still receives treatment in Istanbul.

"My grandchild died in the incident. My wife still receives medical treatment in Turkey. She has 65 percent of her body burned," Toma said, slamming Baghdad authorities for not reaching out to them.

Days after the incident, the Iraqi government attributed the deadly blaze to fireworks displayed during the wedding, something that locals and survivors of the tragedy strongly rejected and demanded an international investigation into the matter.

In war-scarred Iraq, safety standards are often ignored as substandard buildings, such as Hamdaniya’s Haytham Hall, lack adequate fire extinguishers and emergency facilities such as evacuation doors.

Hamdaniya is one of Iraq’s only Christian-majority districts, located in the Nineveh Plains near Mosul, a historic Assyrian region. Like many Christian towns in the Nineveh Plains, it was taken over by Islamic State (ISIS) jihadists during their brazen sweep of northern Iraq, where they declared a so-called “caliphate” and inflicted grave atrocities on minority groups, including Christians.

https://www.rudaw.net/english/middleeast/iraq/06112023