ISTANBUL: A fire killed at least 29 people in a 16-story residential building in Istanbul on Tuesday, the governor of Turkiye’s economic capital said, updating an earlier toll of 15 dead and eight hurt.
“The number of people who lost their lives in the fire... in Gayrettepe of Besiktas district has increased to 29,” governor Davut Gul’s office said in a statement, referring to the Istanbul neighborhood.
“One person hurt in the fire was still being treated in hospital,” it added.
The fire began at 12:47 (0947 GMT), the office said, and was only brought under control by firefighters hours later.
Television images showed flames and a column of thick smoke rushing from upper-story windows.
The number of people reported killed and hurt rose throughout the afternoon in a string of statements from the governor’s office, as more victims succumbed to their injuries.
The blaze had broken out during construction work in the first and second floors below ground, which housed a nightclub, Gul told reporters.
“An investigation has been opened into the fire in Gayrettepe,” Interior Minister Ali Yerlikaya posted on X.
Five people have been arrested at the scene in connection with the blaze, news channel NTV reported.
Istanbul’s newly re-elected mayor Ekrem Imamoglu, who rushed to the scene, said “the fire is under control. Let’s hope there are no further victims,” offering his “condolences” to the relatives of the dead and injured.
Toll in Istanbul apartment block blaze mounts to 29 dead
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Toll in Istanbul apartment block blaze mounts to 29 dead
- The fire began at 12:47 (0947 GMT) and was only brought under control by firefighters hours later
- Television images showed flames and a column of thick smoke rushing from upper-story windows
Tunisia lawmaker jailed eight months for criticizing president
- Ahmed Saidani was taken into custody earlier this month after posting on social media
- Dozens of his critics are being prosecuted or in prison, including under a law criminalizing “false news“
TUNIS: A Tunisian court has sentenced a lawmaker to eight months in prison for criticizing President Kais Saied following recent floods, local media reported.
Ahmed Saidani was taken into custody earlier this month after posting on social media about Saied’s visits to areas affected by floods, calling him the “supreme commander of sanitation and stormwater drainage.”
Saidani’s lawyer, Houssem Eddine Ben Attia, had told AFP his client was being prosecuted under a telecommunications law against “harming others via social media,” which carries up to two years in prison.
Rights groups have warned of a rollback on freedoms in Tunisia since Saied staged a sweeping power grab in 2021.
Dozens of his critics are being prosecuted or in prison, including under a law criminalizing “false news.”
Saidani had backed Saied’s power grab and the detention of several opposition figures, but has recently become vocally critical of the president.
At least five people died and others were still missing after Tunisia was hit by its heaviest rainfall in more than 70 years last month.
