At least 14 newborn babies have died after a fire tore through the nursery of a maternity ward at the Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences (PIMS) in Islamabad. The blaze, reportedly triggered by a faulty air conditioning unit, broke out in the early morning in a ward housing at least 15 infants, prompting Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif to order an immediate investigation and describe the tragedy as "irreparable".

The fire started at around 6.45am local time when an air conditioning unit is alleged to have exploded inside the nursery, part of the hospital's gynaecology ward. Nineteen people, including ten women, seven children and two men, were rescued, and one baby was saved, while the injured have been taken to intensive care. Islamabad's District Magistrate has set up a fact-finding committee, required to report within 24 hours, as the incident adds to a series of recent fatal fires and industrial accidents in Pakistan linked to weak safety enforcement.