BAGHDAD (AP) — Iraq’s prime minister approved sweeping disciplinary and legal measures against senior commanders in a paramilitary force after clashes with police at a government facility that left three people dead last month, his office said Saturday.
Gunmen descended on the agricultural directorate in Baghdad's Karkh district on July 27 and clashed with federal police. The raid came after the former head of the directorate was ousted and a new one appointed.
A government-commissioned investigation found that the former director — who was implicated in corruption cases — had called in members of the Kataib Hezbollah militia to stage the attack, Sabah Al-Numan, a spokesperson for Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani, said in a statement Saturday.
Al-Sudani, who also serves as commander in chief of the armed forces, ordered the formation of a committee to investigate the attack.
Kataib Hezbollah is part of the Popular Mobilization Forces, a coalition of mostly Shiite, Iran-backed militias that formed to fight the Islamic State extremist group as it rampaged across the country more than a decade ago.
The PMF was formally placed under the control of the Iraqi military in 2016, but in practice it still operates with significant autonomy. Some groups within the coalition have periodically launched drone attacks on bases housing U.S. troops in Syria.
The Kataib Hezbollah fighters who staged the attack in Karkh were affiliated with the 45th and 46th Brigades of the PMF, the government statement said.
Al-Sudani approved recommendations to remove the commanders of those two brigades, refer all those involved in the raid to the judiciary, and open an investigation into “negligence in leadership and control duties” in the PMF command, it said.
The report also cited structural failings within the PMF, noting the presence of formations that act outside the chain of command.
The relationship between the Iraqi state and the PMF has been a point of tension with the United States as Iraq attempts to balance its relations with Washington and Tehran.
The Iraqi parliament is discussing legislation that would solidify the relationship between the military and the PMF, drawing objections from Washington, which considers some of the armed groups in the coalition, including Kataib Hezbollah, to be terrorist organizations.
In an interview with The Associated Press last month, Al-Sudani defended the proposed legislation, saying it’s part of an effort to ensure that arms are controlled by the state. “Security agencies must operate under laws and be subject to them and be held accountable,” he said.
Iraq's Prime Minister Mohammed al-Sudani speaks during an interview with The Associated Press in Baghdad on Monday, July 28, 2025. (AP Photo/Hadi Mizban)
A fire at a bar in the Swiss ski resort of Crans-Montana in the early hours of New Year's Day has left dozens of people presumed dead and around 100 injured, according to authorities. Here is a look at some other nightclub, bar and music venue fires that have led to significant death tolls:
— March 2025: A fire and ensuing stampede at the crowded Pulse club in Kocani, North Macedonia, killed 63 people, most of them young revelers, and injured more than 200. It was set off by a pyrotechnic flame that engulfed the roof of the club.
— April 2024: A blaze at the Masquerade nightclub in Istanbul, Turkey, trapped workers and employees while the venue was closed for renovations, leaving 29 people dead. It was located on the ground and basement floors of a 16-story residential building.
— October 2023: A fire that started at a nightclub in the southeastern Spanish city of Murcia and spread to two other clubs left 13 people dead.
— January 2022: A nightclub in Sorong, in Indonesia’s West Papua province, burned after two groups attacked each other inside the building. Nineteen people were killed.
— January 2022: A blaze at Liv’s Nightclub Yaouba in Yaounde, the capital of Cameroon, set off explosions that killed 17 people. The government suggested that fireworks set the roof alight and the fire then spread to areas where cooking gas was stored.
— December 2016: Thirty-six people died in a fire at a warehouse in Oakland, California that had been converted into a residence and event space for artists dubbed the “Ghost Ship.” The blaze, which broke out during an electronic music and dance party, moved so quickly that victims were trapped on the illegally constructed second floor.
— October 2015: A blaze that broke out during a rock band’s pyrotechnics display at the Colectiv nightclub in the Romanian capital, Bucharest, killed 64 people and left some 190 injured.
— January 2013: A fire killed more than 200 people at the Kiss nightclub in the city of Santa Maria in southern Brazil. Investigators said soundproofing foam on the ceiling caught fire and released poisonous gases that quickly killed those attending a university party.
— December 2009: Some 152 people died when a blaze broke out at the Lame Horse nightclub in Perm, Russia. It started when an indoor fireworks display ignited a plastic ceiling decorated with branches.
— January 2009: An indoor fireworks display after a New Year’s countdown ignited a blaze in the Santika club in Bangkok, Thailand, killing 67 people and injuring many more. Victims died from burns, smoke inhalation, and from being crushed.
— September 2008: A fire killed 44 people at the jammed King of Dancers nightclub in Shenzhen, China, when a stampede broke out after a fireworks show ignited the ceiling.
— December 2004: In Buenos Aires, Argentina, a fire killed 194 people at the crowded Cromagnon Republic club after a flare ignited ceiling foam. Club owner Omar Chaban was sentenced to 20 years in prison for causing the deadly fire and for bribery. Others received lighter sentences.
— February 2003: A fire at the Station nightclub in West Warwick, Rhode Island, in the United States, killed 100 people and injured more than 200 others. Fireworks being used by the band set fire to flammable foam inside the club.
— January 2001: A fire at a cafe in the Dutch town of Volendam where people were celebrating the New Year killed 14 people and injured more than 200.
— December 2000: A fire that was blamed on a welding accident killed 309 people at a disco in the central Chinese city of Luoyang.
— October 1998: An arson attack against an overcrowded youth disco in the Swedish city of Goteborg killed 63 people and left around 200 injured. Four people were later convicted for starting the fire.
— March 1996: A fire at the Ozone Disco Pub in Quezon City, Philippines, killed 162 people. A large proportion of the victims were students partying to mark the end of the academic year.
— March 1990: An arson attack at the Happy Land nightclub in the Bronx borough of New York City killed 87 people. It started when a man angry with his girlfriend threw gasoline on the club’s only exit and set it on fire, then jammed down the metal front gate so people were trapped.
— December 1983: A fire at the Alcala dance hall in Madrid, Spain, left 78 people dead and more than 20 injured.
— May 1977: A fire at the Beverly Hills Supper Club in Southgate, Kentucky, killed 165 people and injured more than 200.
— November 1942: The deadliest nightclub fire in U.S. history killed 492 people at Boston’s Cocoanut Grove club. The fire at what had been one of Boston’s foremost nightspots led to new requirements for sprinkler systems and accessible exits.
— April 1940: A fire ignited the decorative Spanish moss draping the ceiling of the Rhythm Night Club in Natchez, Mississippi, killing 209 people. The windows had been boarded up to prevent people from sneaking in.
Police officers inspect the area where a fire broke out at the Le Constellation bar and lounge leaving people dead and injured, during New Year’s celebration, in Crans-Montana, Swiss Alps, Switzerland, Thursday, Jan. 1, 2026. (Alessandro della Valle/Keystone via AP)
Police officers inspect the area where a fire broke out at the Le Constellation bar and lounge leaving people dead and injured, during New Year’s celebration, in Crans-Montana, Swiss Alps, Switzerland, Thursday, Jan. 1, 2026. (Alessandro della Valle/Keystone via AP)
