Scores of people have died after a ferry carrying families celebrating the Nowruz holiday capsized in the Tigris river near the Iraqi city of Mosul, according to officials.
Major General Saad Maan, a spokesman for the Interior Ministry, said 71 people died and another 55 have been rescued, including 19 children, in Thursday's accident.
Al Jazeera's Natasha Ghoneim, reporting from the Iraqi capital, Baghdad, said footage posted on social media showed "a very distressing picture" at what appeared to be a theme park.
"We are seeing video of what appears to be a ferry upside down ... people jumping into the Tigris River in an attempt to rescue others. We can hear people along the banks screaming and we can see several people swimming furiously in what appears to be a rather swift current."
Hussam Khalil, head of the Civil Defense in the northern Nineveh province, told the Associated Press that the vessel, which had more than 80 people on board, had sunk due to a technical problem.
Other reports put the number of passengers at about 200.
Nowruz, which marks the Kurdish new year and the arrival of spring, is celebrated across territories that once made up the ancient Persian empire, stretching from the Middle East to Central Asia. The holiday is celebrated as the Persian New Year in Iran.
SOURCE: Al Jazeera and news agencies
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