Police use lethal force on Baghdad protesters

DAMASCUS: Iraqi police officers used lethal force against a small group of protesters near Tahrir square in Baghdad amid the anti-government protests that are sweeping the country, media reports said yesterday.

The demonstrations in Baghdad and several other areas in central and southern Iraq began on Tuesday, with the protesters demanding economic reforms and an end to corruption.

The rallies turned violent as law enforcement officers attempted to suppress the crowds. On Thursday, a curfew was introduced in Baghdad and several other regions, but the move failed to de-escalate the violence. Over two dozen people have been killed, including both protesters and law enforcement personnel.

According to the Shafaq news agency, apart from Tahrir square, the majority of the capital’s districts had been quiet since morning yesterday.

The media also reported that the security forces were dispersed throughout the city and another mass protest was set to take place later in the day.

In his televised message, Iraqi Prime Minister Adil Abdul-Mahdi announced the creation of a committee to release previously detained protesters and said that all who had died in the protests would be considered “martyrs”. He also promised to introduce payments to low-income families.

Meanwhile, Iraq’s top Shia cleric yesterday criticised the government in the wake of the violence, urging both the political leaders and the protesters to pull back “before it is too late” – as the death toll in this week’s demonstrations climbed to 42.

The highly-anticipated comments by Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani were his first since the protests erupted earlier this week.

Many across Iraq’s predominantly Shia south had looked to the cleric for guidance. |