Iraq’s national power grid experienced a “total blackout” on Monday, caused by record-high temperatures and increased electricity consumption that led to the shutdown of two transmission lines, the Ministry of Electricity reports.
While households can still rely on generators that typically offset power cuts, the outage comes as temperatures soar to 50°C in Baghdad and across central and southern Iraq.
The spike in electricity demand is particularly pronounced in the province of Karbala, where millions of Shia pilgrims are gathering this week for a religious commemoration, the ministry added.
