At least 14 newborn babies die in fire at Pakistan hospital’s maternity ward

A man consoles a grieving father outside the Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences in Islamabad. Photograph: Aamir Qureshi/AFP/Getty Images

At least 14 newborn babies have died in a fire that broke out in the maternity ward at one of Pakistan’s most prominent state hospitals.

The blaze began in the early hours of Wednesday and engulfed the ward at the Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences, the biggest state hospital in Islamabad.