UN agencies warn that the latest fighting has newly displaced nearly one quarter of the Gaza Strip's population this month
It was heartbreaking. There are perhaps no words to describe what happened during a wedding in Iraq's Nineveh province on Wednesday.
It was supposed to be the special day in the lives of the bride and the bridegroom. But it ended in nightmare, the scars of which will be felt and would be tough to erase.
A fire raced through the hall hosting a Christian wedding killing over a 100 people and injured 150 others, authorities said.
The fire happened in the Hamdaniya area, a predominantly Christian area just outside of the city of Mosul, some 335 kilometres northwest of the capital, Baghdad.
The cause of the blaze was apparently because of the fireworks at the venue.
It was a sombre atmosphere days after as survivors of the fire and others, including the bridegroom, mourned the dead.
A drummer, who was at the scene, gave a chilling account of the horror.
"The fire started in the hall, the hall was full of flowers, and material made from sponge. So, when fire was out, everything caught fire. In around 10 seconds, the whole hall was on fire," he was quoted as saying by Al Arabiya English.
There were two main doors, but when the electricity came down, it became foggy in the hall. Amid the fog, people couldn't see clearly. There were around 1000 people in the hall, it is a big hall. When it became dark, people started suffocate and fell down. They wanted to rush out but they couldn't. The ceiling came down and people were stuck. They were screaming and wanted to go out but they couldn't. No one could get in to help them. Had I gone in, I would have been dead like them. We helped as many as we could to go out from the entrance of the kitchen. I saw a family (father and son) who walked out but the father went back inside to help his wife. He got burnt with her and both died," added the visibly shaken man.
Vidoes of the blaze have surfaced on social media platforms with many videos showing the start of the fire.
In the videos, the bride and the bridegroom can be seen enjoying a dance before the fire engulfs the hall.
In the aftermath, the bridegroom can seen look inconsolable as he his comforted by a friend, as others mourn the dead.
Watch the videos here: (Warning: Some readers may find the following videos disturbing. Viewer discretion is advised)
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