Death toll rises in Iraqi cities as protesters defy curfew

of Baghdad attempted to converge on the square.

But with internet access restricted, demonstrators struggled to communicate with each other or post footage of the latest clashes.

About 75 per cent of Iraq is offline after major network operators “intentionally restricted” access, according to cybersecurity monitor NetBlocks.

The protests appear to be largely spontaneous so far, with demonstrators carrying Iraqi flags and shunning any involvement by the country’s main political players.

After the Green Zone explosion, the US coalition in Iraq said no US facilities were hit.

“Coalition troops always reserve the right to defend ourselves, attacks on our personnel will not be tolerated. The Coalition is here at the invitation of the government of Iraq,” it said.

An Iraqi security official said two mortar shells hit the Green Zone but did not cause any casualties.

The US embassy in Baghdad issued a warning to citizens to avoid areas where demonstrations were taking place.

Many traditional figures expressed their support for the movement, with populist cleric Moqtada Al Sadr urging “peaceful demonstrations”.

He was behind major protests in Baghdad in 2016, when his supporters stormed the Green Zone, but his involvement appears less obvious this time.

The rallies seem to have split Iraqi officials. President Barham Salih said peaceful protest was a “constitutional right” and parliament called for an investigation into the deaths.

But in an unpopular move, Mr Abdul Mahdi blamed the violence on “aggressors who ... deliberately created casualties”.

The Khosravi and Chazabeh border crossings between Iraq and Iran were closed because of the unrest, Iran’s semiofficial news agency Mehr said.

A senior Iranian pilgrimage official told state TV the Khosravi border crossing was closed, but other crossings were open in the lead-up to an annual Shiite pilgrimage in Iraq.