Iraq health minister resigns over deadly hospital fire

BAGHDAD — Iraq's health minister resigned on Tuesday, ten days after a fire in a Baghdad COVID-19 hospital killed more than 80 people.

Hassan Al Tamimi, who joined the government with the backing of powerful Shiite leader Moqtada Sadr, stepped down of his own accord, a government statement said.

The fire, which killed 82 and injured 110, triggered outrage on social media, with a widespread hashtag demanding the health minister be sacked.

Prime Minister Mustafa Al Kadhemi, a non-partisan independent who regularly extends a hand to the Sadrists — the largest parliamentary bloc — had opted to suspend Tamimi in the wake of the fire, along with a slew of other officials.

The government statement added the cabinet had revoked Tamimi's suspension earlier on Tuesday, along with that of Baghdad's governor — both highly politicised positions in a system known for its clientelism.

The blaze broke out in the pre-dawn hours of April 25, sparked by the explosion of badly stored oxygen cylinders.

Many of the victims were on respirators being treated for COVID-19 and were burned or suffocated in the resulting inferno that spread rapidly through the hospital, where dozens of relatives were visiting patients in the intensive care unit.

The results of the probe into the incident blamed lower-rung officials.

The director of the Ibn Al Khatib hospital, his administrative deputy, the head of the hospital's civil defence and the head of the health department in eastern Baghdad "were dismissed and will be subject to several disciplinary measures", the government statement said.