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  Iraq declares first-ever heat holiday, closes government offices
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ContributorArmyDem 
Last EditedArmyDem  Aug 01, 2011 12:59pm
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MediaNewspaper - Washington Post
News DateMonday, August 1, 2011 06:00:00 PM UTC0:0
DescriptionBy Ed O'Keefe and Aziz Alwan, Updated: Monday, August 1, 12:30 AM

BAGHDAD — It was so hot in Iraq on Monday that the country declared its first-ever “heat day.”

Iraq’s central government shuttered its offices and sent public-sector workers home across most of the country as temperatures surpassed 122 degrees Fahrenheit and Muslims began fasting to mark the start of the holy month of Ramadan.

Television news programs began announcing the closures Sunday night — just as American newscasts might inform viewers of snow days. The closures apply to government offices in the Baghdad region, Diyala province in central Iraq and all southern provinces — including Iraq’s second-largest city, Basra. Government offices in the northern Kurdistan region remain open, thanks to slightly cooler temperatures (110 degrees) and the region’s more reliable electricity supply.

Local residents and officials said they could not recall the government ever before closing due to excessive heat. The nation’s schools are not affected, because children are on summer vacation.
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