Malaysia has identified all 23 people who died in a horrific fire at an Islamic boarding school, an official said today, as calls mounted for tougher regulation after the worst such tragedy in two decades.

The fire killed 21 teenage boys and two teachers after it broke out early on Thursday at a “tahfiz” school, where students learned to memorize the Koran.

“We hope and pray this will be the last such incident and preventive actions must be in place and be the order of the day,” said Malaysia’s director general of health, adding that DNA tests were used to identify the bodies.

Family members of Mohamad Haikal Abdullah, a 12-year-old who died in the blaze, were furious over reports that the only door to the school’s dormitory had caught fire while metal bars on the windows trapped the boys, leaving them unable to escape.

Fire officials said they found no damage to the electrical wiring of the dormitory, ruling out their earlier suggestion that a short circuit probably caused the blaze.

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