3 killed, 18 injured as bus falls from mountain in Iraqi Kurdistan

Three people have been killed and 18 others were injured as a tourist minibus fell from a mountain in Kurdistan region of Iraq, according to local media reports.

The accident took place on Baranan Mountain, located on the Garmian – Sulaimani road on Friday morning when the driver was reportedly speeding and lost the control.

Director of Traffic Police in Darbandikhan Rezhan Burhan said, "The minibus was carrying two Arab families visiting from Diyala province."

"Three died in the crash and 18 more were injured," Burhan said, adding two are critically wounded.

The rocky mountainous road has become a temporary route for people traveling between Garmian and Sulaimani as the Darbandikhan tunnel is currently undergoing reconstruction and maintenance.

The Kurdistan Region annually receives millions of tourists, most of whom are locals coming from the central and southern parts of Iraq.

As many as 224 people died in car crashes in the Sulaimani province in 2018. Nearly three-quarters of those who died in fatal accidents were men.

Car crashes are a major cause of death and injury in the Kurdistan Region and Iraq, mostly due to speeding, poor road conditions, and failure to wear seat belts.