10 killed in devastating crash on notorious Kirkuk-Tikrit highway

KIRKUK — A devastating traffic accident on the Kirkuk-Tikrit highway claimed the lives of 10 members of a single family on Thursday morning, local sources reported.

Mohammed Aqeeli, an eyewitness at the scene, told 964media, “At approximately 7:30 a.m., a severe collision involving three vehicles occurred” on the Kirkuk-Tikrit road near the Al Rashad district, about 35 kilometres from Kirkuk city.

He added that the family, travelling in a Chevrolet Tahoe operated by the Noura Travel Agency in Erbil, was en route to Tikrit when the fatal accident took place.

The heavy crash resulted in the deaths of 10 individuals—four children, three women, and three men—all from the same family, while two others were injured, a local source told 964media.

The victims’ exact hometown has not yet been confirmed.

Ali Mukhlif, a spokesperson for Kirkuk’s Civil Defense, stated that initial investigations suggest excessive speeding was the main cause of the accident. He also highlighted the poor condition of the road, which has been undergoing renovations for several years without completion. “More than three accidents occur on this road every week,” Mukhlif added.

Recently, the busy Kirkuk-Tikrit highway has become a hotspot for some of Iraq’s most fatal traffic accidents, largely due to its poor condition and delayed renovations. On September 15, 2024, a severe collision on the highway claimed the lives of three family members. This tragedy is part of a series of deadly crashes on the road, including a late-night accident on Sept. 9 that killed four people, among them Sheikh Safaa Al-Rishawi, the deputy governor of Anbar. Just a day earlier, four more lives were lost in two separate incidents along the same dangerous stretch of highway.