Civil defense launches fresh safety inspections at residential complexes across Iraq

BAGHDAD — Iraq’s Civil Defense Directorate on Sunday began a nationwide inspection campaign of multi-story residential complexes in Baghdad and other governorates to check construction permits and fire prevention systems.

The Civil Defense Inspection Department said teams visited residential buildings in Baghdad’s Karkh area to review approved building plans and verify compliance with legal requirements. Inspectors also checked for fire hydrants, and manual and automatic extinguishing systems.

The directorate said violations would be referred either to civil defense adjudication sessions or to criminal courts.

The campaign follows July’s deadly supermarket fire in Kut, Wasit governorate, which killed at least 61 people and triggered a broad crackdown on safety enforcement. On July 18, the Interior Ministry said 610 commercial and industrial facilities across Iraq were temporarily closed for violating civil defense regulations. Later in the month, authorities in Baghdad’s Rusafa area shuttered about 700 commercial projects in Shorja and surrounding districts over fire safety violations.