ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - A fire broke out Sunday morning at the newly inaugurated Heart of the World Hotel in Baghdad’s upscale Qadisiyah district. The hotel, which recently hosted events for the 34th Arab League Summit, confirmed that the incident resulted in no injuries and caused only material damage. Hotel owner Abdullah al-Jubouri released a statement saying, “A fire broke out in our hotel today, and we thank God that no one was harmed. The damages were material and not extensive.” Civil defense teams responded quickly to the scene and were able to extinguish the flames before they could spread further. Jubouri credited the hotel’s safety infrastructure for minimizing the impact, stating that “both internal and external fire suppression systems were automatically activated, including high-pressure water systems.” While the exact cause of the fire has not yet been disclosed, Jubouri acknowledged the swift response from emergency services and expressed gratitude for the solidarity shown by officials and the public. He assured that hotel operations would return to normal soon. The Heart of the World Hotel was officially inaugurated on May 11 by Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia’ al-Sudani. It played a key role during the Arab League Summit on May 17, serving as a venue for diplomatic delegations and hosting a state-of-the-art press center to facilitate media coverage of the event.
