Baghdad oil refinery fire doused

"The firemen succeeded to put the blaze out at 9:30 am (0630 GMT)," said ministry spokesman Assem Jihad. "A catastrophe was averted."

One of the Dura refinery's production units was hit late Thursday in an apparent mortar or rocket attack and Jihad said several firemen were injured fighting the ensuing blaze.

The refinery provides fuel for Baghdad's main power plant, which supplies electricity for most of the capital and outlying areas.

Jihad described the attack as another attempt by insurgents to aggravate the fuel shortage gripping oil-rich Iraq that has cars waiting for hours for gas.