At least nine civilians and 19 security forces have been injured in recent protests in Iraq, the state news agency INA reports, citing the authorities. Among other things, demonstrators threw stones and Molotov cocktails at the security forces. According to eyewitnesses, tear gas was used after numerous participants had tried to overcome barriers.
On the anniversary of the movement, several thousand people took to the streets across the country. Many held portraits of those killed three years ago. On October 1, 2019, mass protests broke out against the country’s political leadership and the poor economic situation. The protest movement has spread to poor southern Iraq, where the Shia majority is inhabited.
Protesters flee tear gas fired by police in Baghdad’s Tahrir Square
For several months, hundreds of thousands of people denounced youth unemployment, a deteriorating infrastructure and a lack of democracy. At least 600 people were killed and many thousands injured in the crackdown on the protests. Repression and corona restrictions caused the demonstrations to die down.
In Iraq, rival political forces have been wrestling with each other for months. The parties have not been able to form a government since the parliamentary elections a year ago. Meanwhile, the people in the country are suffering from an economic crisis, inflation and corruption.
nob/jj (afp, dpa)
