NAJAF, IRAQ - JULY 17, 2025: A funeral ceremony was held at Imam Ali Shrine in Iraq’s Najaf on Thursday, July 17, for nine of the victims who lost their lives in a devastating shopping center fire in Kut city. Grieving families gathered at the holy site to pay their final respects to their loved ones, as religious officials led prayers. At least 61 people were killed and dozens more rescued after a fire tore through a shopping center in eastern Iraq on Thursday, the country’s Interior Ministry said. The blaze broke out in a shopping center in Kut, the capital of Wasit governorate, south of Baghdad, the ministry said in a statement. More than 45 people were rescued from the burning building, while others suffered injuries. Iraq’s official news agency INA, citing a medical source, put the death toll at 63, with 40 others injured. The local authorities have initiated the legal proceedings against the owner of the shopping center, the governor said in a statement cited by INA. The Interior Ministry instructed the formation of an investigation committee to identify the cause of the fire, INA added. Reporting by Karar Essa // Writing by Mustafa Tuncer