ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - Kirkuk police have temporarily detained five guards responsible for the security of a grand bazaar which caught fire earlier this week, interrogating them, sources told Rudaw on Thursday. The fire at Kirkuk’s Ottoman-era Qaysari bazaar in the early hours of Monday burned over 100 shops. Shopkeepers said they were suspicious about the source of the fire because it broke out in different areas of the bazaar at the same time. A security source on Thursday told Rudaw on the condition of anonymity that five guards of the burned buildings have been interrogated by the police over the devastating blaze. Omer Jabar, who represents two burned buildings, told Rudaw that one of the detained guards was responsible for the security of both buildings. “They have been suspended from their jobs.” He clarified that the interrogation is part of the investigation and does not necessarily mean the five people were responsible for the fire. “We believe that there is a hidden hand behind the fire.” Fires are a perennial concern in Iraq and the Kurdistan Region where safety standards are often lacking. Electrical faults and a lack of basic safety measures are a major part of the problem. But a series of frequent bazaar fires in Erbil recently have led people to suspect arson, with shopkeepers alleging that such fires are frequently ignited to cause chaos and allow thieves to ransack their shops. Earlier in May, a devastating blaze at Erbil’s Qaysari bazaar injured at least 132 people and burned a total of 227 shops and seven storages.
