Deadly Iraq Mall Fire Claims 63 Lives as Authorities Investigate Safety Failures

An Iraqi security guard stands in front of a burning hypermarket building in Kut, Iraq, Thursday, July 17, 2025

Officials in Iraq are working to identify more than a dozen severely burned bodies following a catastrophic fire that engulfed a newly opened shopping mall in the city of Kut, Wasit province. The final death toll stands at 63, including 18 victims who were burned beyond recognition and will require DNA testing for identification, according to a medical official involved in the investigation.

The fire erupted late Wednesday inside the Corniche Hypermarket mall—a five-story complex that housed restaurants, retail stores, and a supermarket. Officials say the blaze began on the second floor, in an area selling perfumes and cosmetics, and rapidly consumed large sections of the building. Despite the efforts of civil defense teams who rescued 45 people, most of the fatalities occurred on the upper floors, where victims were trapped by the spreading flames.

Mourners attend the funeral of victims who died in a fire at a shopping center in Kut, at the shrine of Imam Ali in Najaf, Iraq, Thursday, July 17, 2025

Though the exact cause of the fire has not yet been determined, authorities have pointed to a lack of safety protocols and regulatory oversight as contributing factors. Provincial Governor Mohammed al-Miyahi confirmed that the mall's owner failed to implement basic fire safety measures and had not obtained the necessary operational permits.

The Wasit provincial council has since suspended both the director of Kut municipality and the director of occupational safety pending the outcome of ongoing investigations. The council also voted to form multiple committees to inspect building safety compliance throughout the province.

Iraqi security forces gather in front of a burning hypermarket building in Kut, Iraq, Thursday, July 17, 2025

Legal action has been initiated against the building’s owner and the owner of the shopping center. Governor al-Miyahi disclosed that members of the shopping center owner's family, including his son, were among those killed in the inferno.

This tragedy adds to a growing list of fatal fires in Iraq attributed to substandard building practices. In July 2021, a hospital fire in Nasiriyah—fueled by the use of highly flammable sandwich panel cladding—killed up to 92 people. In 2023, over 100 people died when pyrotechnics ignited ceiling panels during a wedding in Nineveh province.

The Kut mall disaster has renewed urgent calls for enforcement of fire codes and improved construction standards nationwide.