Baghdad police say eight women have been killed in a fight and fire at a women's jail in the north of the city.

An officer at the Rusafa police division says the fire started in the jail's kitchen after inmates got into a fight with one another, on Friday. The fire quickly spread through the two-story facility in Baghdad's Azamiyah district.

Two women died from stab wounds and six in the fire, according to the officer, who asked to have his name withheld in line with police regulations.

Twenty two others are being treated for injuries at two nearby hospitals.

The jail is run by the Justice Ministry's Office for Rehabilitation and houses homeless women.