Second fire in three days at Baghdad airport

A fresh fire broke out at a terminal at Baghdad International Airport early yesterday, the second in three days, prompting the Iraqi prime minister to fire three airport officials. The director of the airport, the head of security and the head of the Civil Aviation Authority have been relieved of their duties, his services said in a media release. The fire, which was extinguished by firefighters and civil defense units, affected a VIP lounge at the “Nineveh” terminal and offices of several air carriers. Prime Minister Mohamed Zia El-Soudani went to the airport to “follow an investigation on the ground.” In the early 1980s, when dictator Saddam Hussein ruled Iraq, Baghdad Airport was not extensively renovated. Officials say the airport’s fire sprinkler system has been “non-functional since 2013” and the Prime Minister has called for those responsible for the failure to be identified after a brief fire broke out. Already announced on Tuesday, it starts with a bar. Three sustained minor injuries.