'Excessive speeds'
Series of traffic incidents in Iraq claims eight lives in one day
NEWSROOM — A series of traffic incidents on Saturday claimed the lives of eight people, including five children, and left several others injured across Iraq, with officials citing excessive speed as the primary cause.
In the Al-Zubair district west of Basra, a collision in the Al-Shamal neighborhood killed a four-year-old child and critically injured four others. According to a security source who spoke to 964media, the crash involved an Elantra and a Hyundai, both reportedly speeding.
The injured are receiving care at Al-Zubair Hospital. This incident marks the second fatal accident in the area within three days, leading to calls from local residents for speed bumps and traffic signals to prevent further tragedies.
Early Saturday, a severe crash between a vehicle and a truck on the road linking the Al-Gharraf and Al-Shatra districts north of Dhi Qar resulted in the deaths of three family members, including a child. A security source indicated the collision was caused by excessive speed. The deceased include the vehicle’s driver, a child, and a woman, with another woman injured. The bodies were sent to the forensic department.
In Diyala, a woman and her three children died in a hit-and-run accident while crossing the Muqdadiya-Khanaqin road. A speeding vehicle struck them, causing immediate fatalities and injuring another child.
In a separate incident in the same region, a collision on the Diyala-Baghdad Road near Al-Khalis injured two policemen and a civilian. The civilian driver sustained severe injuries.
According to Iraq’s Ministry of Planning, more than 3,000 people died in traffic accidents across the country in 2023, excluding the Kurdistan Region. The ministry reported 11,552 traffic incidents last year, with 3,262 being fatal and 8,290 non-fatal.
Driver error accounted for 79% of these accidents, with vehicle malfunctions, poor road conditions, and pedestrian behavior also contributing. Despite the prevalence of driver negligence, ongoing infrastructure issues exacerbated by conflict, neglect, and corruption have left many roads and bridges in dire condition, worsening the traffic safety crisis.
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