Security forces in Iraq have raided protest camps in an attempt to remove anti-government activists, killing at least three. On Friday influential cleric Muqtada al-Sadr withdrew his support for the protest movement.
Image: picture-alliance/AP Photo/H. Mizban
Advertisement
Iraqi security forces clashed with protesters in Baghdad, Nasiriyah and Basra on Saturday after authorities began to remove concrete barriers near anti-government demonstration sites.
Dozens of protesters were wounded in clashes with police and at least three protesters were shot dead.
Authorities advanced toward Tahrir Square in Baghdad, where the main protest camp is based, shooting live rounds and firing tear gas in an effort to disperse protesters.
The Baghdad Operations Command said security forces also reopened Mohamed al-Qassim highway and other roads near Tahrir Square.
Protesters' tents were also reportedly set alight as police tried to remove them in order to reopen public squares and at least one bridge over the Tigris River.
Demonstrators fear that their long-running campaign would be sidelined if they were cleared from the site at Tahrir Square.
Sadr withdraws support
The fresh clashes happened a day after populist Shiite politician and cleric Muqtada al-Sadr organized his own mass rally demanding US troops leave Iraq, before announcing that he would no longer back the protest movement.
In a tweet Friday evening, Sadr indicated his "disappointment" toward anti-government protesters in Baghdad.
The removal of his support is a heavy blow to the tens of thousands of protesters, many of them from Baghdad's slums, who have taken to the streets and who saw Sadr as a leader.
Security officials launched tear gas against Iraqi anti-government protesters on SaturdayImage: Getty Images/AFP/S. Arar
Basra camp also raided
Security officials also stormed a large protest camp in the port city of Basra, forcing activists to flee. They arrested 16 sit-in protesters.
There are concerns that security forces are aiming for a wider crackdown to end months of unrest, taking advantage of Sadr's removal of support for the activists.
Some 470 people have been killed since the protests erupted in the capital and the Shiite-majority south in October.
The protests were initially fueled by anger over graft and joblessness but then ballooned into demands for deep political reforms.
Violence erupts during protests in Iraq
Iraqis ushered in October with anti-government protests in Baghdad. The intermittent violent confrontations have so far resulted in hundreds of injuries and dozens of deaths. Unease remains in several cities.
Image: picture-alliance/dpa/A. al Mohammedaw
Protests begin as civilians try to enter government property
On October 1, thousands of protesters took to the streets in the Iraqi capital of Baghdad to protest the government. Among their demands were reducing unemployment, providing better services and ending corruption. The demonstrations converged on the centrally located Tahrir Square. The protesters also tried to enter the fortified Green Zone, which houses embassies and government buildings.
Image: picture-alliance/dpa/A. al Mohammedaw
Violent police crackdown
Security forces responded to the protesters attempt to enter the Green Zone by blocking roads and using tear gas, stun guns and water canons. After the demonstrators refused to leave, the forces opened fire with rubber bullets and with live fire. More than 200 were reportedly injured and one died. One other person died and dozens more were injured in related protests elsewhere in Iraq.
Image: picture-alliance/dpa/K. Mohammed
Calls for restraint
The embattled Iraqi government has only been in power since October 2018. Following the protests, it increased security in Baghdad. Iraqi President Barham Saleh (pictured above in a photo from March 2019) urged "restraint and respect for the law." The UN's top official in Iraq also expressed "grave concern."
Image: picture-alliance/AP Photo/F. Belaid
More protests, more deaths
Protests continued despite the violence. On October 2, fresh demonstrations broke out in downtown Baghdad. Police, who were at the ready with armored vehicles and riot gear, responded with more live fire. By the end of the day, seven people were killed, bringing the total death count over the first two days of October to nine.
Image: picture-alliance/dpa/H. Mizban
Protest multiply
The demonstrations and riots also spread from Baghdad to Iraq's south. In some places demonstrators set buildings on fire. Prime Minister Adel Abdul-Mahdi blamed the violence on "aggressors" and called an emergency national security meeting. While some politicians joined him in criticizing the protesters, others condemned the government's response.
Image: picture-alliance/dpa/H. Mizban
More instability ahead
The government issued a curfew in Baghdad and three southern cities as standoffs continued nationwide, including at the airport outside the capital. By the end of October 3, at least 25 people had been killed. The border between Iraq and Iran was closed ahead of a religious pilgrimage to the Iraqi city of Karbala. Iran urged its citizens not to travel to Iraq; Bahrain issued a similar warning.
Image: picture-alliance/AP Photo/H. Mizban
Anti-government blogger arrested
Come mid-October, determined protesters set fires and closed streets. Meanwhile, Shujaa al-Khafaji, an Iraqi blogger, had been detained, apparently over his coverage of the unrest. A relative of the outspoken writer, who spoke on condition of anonymity for fear of reprisals, said heavily armed masked gunmen snatched him from his apartment in a dawn raid.
Image: picture-alliance/AP Photo/K. Mohammed
No end in sight as death toll rises
As the month neared its end, there was no conclusion to the angry protests. Prime Minister Adel Abdel-Mahdi promised reforms, but still civilians gathered in Baghdad's Tahrir Square waving Iraqi flags and chanting slogans demanding the resignation of the government. More deaths ensued as unrest escalated both in the capital and in the mainly Shiite-populated southern provinces.
