Five-year-old dies after stray dog attack, prompting calls for action

KIRKUK — A five-year-old boy has died after being mauled by stray dogs in Kirkuk’s Marjan City residential area on Tuesday evening. Despite hours of medical care at Azadi Hospital, the child succumbed to his injuries.

Saman Yaba, spokesperson for Kirkuk’s health department, confirmed the incident, stating, “A five-year-old boy, identified as Seraj Wahid Ghazi, was brought to the emergency unit of Azadi Hospital with severe injuries from a dog attack. Our medical teams made every effort to save him, but his injuries were too severe.”

The boy’s body has been transferred to the forensic medical office at Azadi Hospital for examination before being released to his family.

Stray dog attacks are a recurring issue in Iraq and the Kurdistan Region, where incidents have prompted growing calls for action. Earlier this month, a 10-year-old girl died from injuries sustained in a similar attack in Erbil’s Shamamk subdistrict.

Local authorities in Kirkuk are under increasing pressure to address the growing number of stray dogs in residential areas, particularly to safeguard children. While the municipality has focused on capturing and relocating stray dogs to shelters, limited resources have hindered the effectiveness of these measures.