Erbil Governor announces over $1,000 aid per fire victim
Shafaq News/ On Monday, the Governorof Erbil, Omed Khoshnaw, announced that the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG)will provide two million dinars ($1,526.72) to each person affected by thefires at the Bala and Sheikh Allah markets in the city.
In a statement, Khoshnaw noted, "66shops were burned in the first fire, 48 in the second one, and 17 shops in theSheikh Allah market."
Khoshnaw added, "50% of therenovation work at the QaysariBazaar in Erbil has been completed, with two companies handling theproject and 600 million dinars ($91,603.20) allocated for the renovation of theBala market.”
On Sunday, September 9, a fire brokeout at Erbil's Auto Accessories Market, just a week after a major blaze causedsubstantial damage, though no casualties were reported.
Two days later, Erbil’s localgovernment formed a special committee to investigate and assess the damage.
Notably, Erbil, the capital of theKurdistan Region (KRI), has reported nearly 1,000 fires in 2024, manyattributed to deliberate acts or electrical faults. The most severe incidentoccurred at the QaysariBazaar, where 227 shops and 7 warehouses were destroyed, and 132 peoplewere injured.
The Federal Ministry of Interior andthe KRG’s Ministry of Interior have arrested individuals involved in the firesin Erbil, Duhok, and Kirkuk. The suspects, linked to the Kurdistan Workers'Party (PKK), were planning attacks on markets in Baghdad, the Ceyhan oilpipeline, and Erbil’s electricity network.
