7-year-old dead, 3 siblings seriously injured in Jisr az-Zarqa apartment fire

Woman also hurt; young children said to be in stable condition; police investigating cause of the blaze at home in northern Israel

By ToI Staff 9 May 2021, 8:41 am

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The building in the northern town of Jisr az-Zarqa where a 7-year-old boy died and his 3 siblings were seriously hurt in an apartment fire, May 8, 2021 (Israel Police)

A 7-year-old boy died and his three siblings were seriously injured in an apartment fire in the northern town of Jisr az-Zarqa on Saturday evening.

According to Hebrew-language reports, the three young children were in serious but stable condition, suffering from burns and smoke inhalation.

After emergency services arrived on the scene, two of the children were taken to Rambam Medical Center in Haifa and two others to Hillel Yaffe Medical Center in Hadera, where doctors declared the death of 7-year-old Ibrahim Ahmed Juhar.

Additionally, a 47-year-woman was taken to hospital for treatment, police said. There were no details given on her condition.

According to Channel 12 news, the fire had been extinguished and neighbors had brought the children to the entrance of the building by the time medics arrived.

The investigation into how the blaze started was said to be focused on a mattress in one of the bedrooms. The report did not say how investigators believed the fire may have been ignited.