Police break up protests

Iraqis protest on bridges across the city demanding an overhaul of the political system

IRAQI security forces fired tear gas and live rounds into the air to disperse protesters in central Baghdad yesterday, as the biggest wave of anti-government demonstrations in decades spread across the capital.

Correspondents said the shootings took place on or near three of Baghdad’s main bridges – Ahrar, Shuhada, and Bab al-Muatham – which have become focal points of the protests.

There appeared to be no deaths. At least 27 people sustained tear gas-related injuries, medical and security sources said. Protesters had blocked the Shuhada Bridge over the River Tigris since Tuesday, as part of efforts to bring the country to a standstill, with thousands joining anti-government demonstrations in the capital and southern provinces.

They had tried to take Ahrar Bridge on Monday when security forces opened fire, killing at least five.

“More youth started gathering, so they kept firing tear gas and live bullets. Maybe four were injured. We didn’t do anything, but they came and arrested everyone.

“The youth are peaceful from the start of the sit-in,” Qusay Mahdi, a protester on Shuhada Bridge, said yesterday. Security forces were also arresting protesters en masse. A correspondent saw police pull over a tuk-tuk in the vicinity of one of the bridges and beat the driver before arresting him.

Clashes over two other bridges near the central Tahrir Square where thousands had been gathering for weeks had been taking place regularly, bringing the total of blocked bridges to five.

More than 260 Iraqis have been killed in demonstrations since the start of last month against a political class they see as corrupt and beholden to foreign interests. In the 24 hours to Tuesday, security forces killed at least 13 protesters.

Four more people died yesterday from injuries sustained at earlier protests over the past week, medical sources said. Iraqis have been congregating in Tahrir Square for weeks, demanding an overhaul of the political system in the biggest wave of mass protests since the fall of Saddam Hussein in 2003.

Since defeating Islamic State in 2017, Iraq has enjoyed two years of comparative stability. But despite its oil wealth, many people live in poverty with limited access to clean water, electricity, healthcare or education.

The root cause of grievances is the sectarian power-sharing system of governance introduced in Iraq after the US-led invasion. Many see political elites as subservient to one or another of Baghdad’s main allies, the US and Iran, who use Iraq as a proxy in a struggle for regional influence.

Protesters are now escalating their tactics, saying civil disobedience is their only recourse and calling for strikes as the government of Prime Minister Adel Abdul Mahdi, in office for a year, has found no response to the protests.

Protesters yesterday blocked the entrance to the Nassiriya oil refinery, security and oil sources said.

Security forces forcibly dispersed a sit-in there overnight in oil-producing Basra, but no deaths were reported, security sources said. Thousands have been blocking all roads leading to Iraq’s main Gulf port Umm Qasr, near Basra.

The Umm Qasr blockade has cost the country more than $6 billion (R88bn) so far, a spokesperson for the prime minister said.

Security sources said yesterday that arrest warrants for protest organisers arrived from Baghdad to all provinces on Tuesday. Dozens have already been arrested in Basra and Nassiriya, they said.

The US Embassy in Baghdad yesterday condemned the deadly violence against unarmed demonstrators, and urged Iraq’s leaders to engage urgently with the thousands who have been protesting. | Reuters