Despite the imposition of a curfew in several cities, the violent protests in Iraq continue: new clashes in the south of the country resulted in more demonstrators being shot dead Thursday, bringing the number of victims to at least 28 since Tuesday. The protests are directed against widespread corruption, chronic blackouts and high unemployment.
The demonstrations challenge the government of Nobel Abdel Mahdi, who took office less than a year ago. Unlike previous protests, they seem to be spontaneous without a party behind them. On Wednesday, however, the radical preacher Moktada al-Sadr called for a "general strike" and "peaceful sit-in blockades". He had already mobilized a broad protest movement in Baghdad in 2016.
The security forces have been using tear gas, water cannons and live ammunition since Tuesday to evict the demonstrators. Nationwide, at least 26 demonstrators and two policemen were killed. In addition, more than a thousand people were injured.
The authorities imposed a curfew for Baghdad and several cities in majority Shiite southern Iraq during the night. The Sunni north is not yet covered by the protests. In many parts of the country, the Internet is interrupted, over which the calls for the protests had been spread. The failure of the Internet made it difficult for the demonstrators to coordinate and share information.
Hadi Mizban / DPA
Protester in Baghdad
In the capital, Baghdad, police fired in the air to drive dozens of demonstrators into central Tahrir Square, an AFP reporter reported. Before dawn, there were two explosions in the Green Zone in Baghdad, where there are many ministries and embassies. The Green Zone had been hit last week by two missiles. Supporters of Moktada al-Sadr had occupied them in 2016 during protests. Police shut down the area, which was reopened to the population in June after 15 years, on Wednesday completely.
The UN Special Envoy for Iraq, Jeanine Hennis-Plasschaert, met some of the demonstrators and then called for "direct dialogue" with the government. "The ability to preserve the right to demonstrate is a sign of political and democratic maturity," she said. The use of violence only causes anger. "It desperately needs de-escalation."
The EU also called for restraint. The human rights organization Amnesty International lamented the brutal deployment of police shooting at demonstrators from military vehicles using automatic weapons.
Already in the summer of last year there had been violent protests against corruption and mismanagement in the southern Iraqi city of Basra. In Iraq, there is a great deal of frustration among the population, partly because of the poor infrastructure and unemployment. So the country is one of the largest oil producers in the world, but suffers from a lack of energy. Many areas are still destroyed after the fight against the terrorist militia "Islamic State" (IS).