At least 21 people have died and dozens more have been injured as heavy rains battered Iraq over the past two days, the health ministry spokesman told AFP Sunday.

Women and children were among the dead, Seif al-Badr said. Some had drowned, but others had died in car accidents, were electrocuted, or were trapped when their houses fell on them.

Iraq and neighboring countries have been hit by heavier-than-average rainfall in recent weeks, resulting in deaths and widespread damage.

The country’s north has borne the brunt of it, and the UN’s Iraq office said the downpour had forced tens of thousands of people out of their homes.

An estimated 10,000 people in Salahaddin province and 15,000 people in Nineveh are in desperate need of help, including families living in displacement camps, the UN said.

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