Al-Kut, also known as Kut al-Imara, is mainly a Shia Muslim city in Iraq. BAGHDAD, Iraq — Police and health officials report that a massive fire in an al-Kut city superstore in eastern Iraq killed at least 60 people, with 11 still missing as of Thursday. Throughout the night, a major fire consumed the five-story self-service store in Al-Kut, while firefighters bravely fought to extinguish it, local media reported. The cause of the fire remains undetermined; however, the governor of the province has announced that preliminary investigation findings will be disclosed within two days. No other piece of information about the deceased was immediately released by the Iraqi government authorities. Bodies were being taken to a hospital for identification. "The governor informed the journalists, 'We have initiated legal action against the owner of the general store."
Shujaat Hussain Abbasi, a former student of the Mass Communication Department at Sindh University, has developed this news blog.