Iraq prison fire kills nine inmates: security

BAGHDAD: A Iraqi prison fire sparked by an electrical fault killed nine prisoners and injured more than a dozen others on Monday, security officials said.

"Nine prisoners were killed and 14 were injured by a fire caused by electrical problems in a prison in Baladiyat," eastern Baghdad, justice ministry spokesman Haidar al-Saadi told AFP in a text message. He did not give any more details about the nature of the electricity
problem.

Earlier, an interior ministry official said the fire broke out at 5:00 am (0200 GMT), putting the toll at three dead and 30 wounded. A defence ministry official, meanwhile, said six people were killed and 18 injured. Both officials spoke on condition of anonymity.

The prison is administered by the justice ministry. Iraq's fractured penal system means detention facilities are run variously by the ministries of justice, interior and defence.

An official at Ibn Nafis hospital in central Baghdad said it had treated four prison guards for their wounds from the fire.