ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - A huge fire engulfed Sulaimani province’s Mount Qaradagh Tuesday afternoon. The cause of the blaze remains unclear but locals blame tourists.
Dozens of dunams of land containing straw, vegetation, and trees have burned - areas that were habitats for dozens of birds and wild animals. Additionally, livestock owners from nearly ten villages used to graze their animals there.
Civil defense teams and locals have failed to extinguish the devastating fire until early Wednesday. The difficult terrain made it impossible for fire trucks to control the fire, and locals use tree branches in their unsuccessful attempts to put out the blaze.
Bakhtiyar Sheikh Mohammed, a villager, told Rudaw that another fire in the area six years ago by tourists lasted for nearly a week.
Shirin Mahmoud, local mayor, told Rudaw that an investigation has been launched into the incident.
Locals blamed arson by tourists.
“Tourism sites usually bring revenues to people but it has brought bad stuff to us,” Mohammed Sheikh Rauf, a resident of Daluja village, lamented.
Qaradagh is a district in Sulaimani province, part of the Kurdistan Region, known for its biodiversity and natural beauty.
Fires are a perennial concern in Iraq and the Kurdistan Region.
Updated at 11:20 am after the fire was controlled.
