EBRIL, Kurdistan Region - At least five people were killed and four others injured in a traffic incident on the Kirkuk-Tikrit road on Thursday.
Saman Yaba, head of the media office at Kirkuk's health directorate, told Rudaw that as many as 10 people may have been killed.
“As of now, five bodies have been delivered to the Kirkuk forensic department, with four injured in Kirkuk hospital. The other casualties may have been taken to Tikrit,” Yaba said.
Rudaw’s Hiwa Husamadin, who visited the hospital hours after the incident, reported 10 fatalities. The incident involved a crane, a sedan, and an SUV.
Traffic incidents are a common occurrence in Iraq where years of war, neglect, and corruption have significantly affected its infrastructure.
Many roads are in substandard condition, having fallen into disrepair, are filled with potholes, and lack proper illumination at night.
Over 4,000 people were killed and thousands more injured in traffic incidents in Iraq in 2023, according to data from the health ministry.
According to a June report by Iraq’s planning ministry, in 2023 more than 11,000 incidents resulted in 3,000 deaths - excluding the Kurdistan Region.
A 2018 World Health Organization (WHO) report highlighted road traffic injuries as the leading cause of death for people aged 5 to 29 globally, with Iraq and the Kurdistan Region having a traffic fatality rate of 20.7 per 100,000 population in 2016.
Rudaw's Nahro Mohammed contributed to this report
