For the first time since the protests resumed on October 24, Iraqi security forces fired on demonstrators on Monday (November 4th) in Baghdad. They opened fire outside the headquarters of the state television, killing at least five people, according to Reuters.

Four protesters were also killed near the Iranian consulate in Kerbala, where protesters blocked roads, administrations, port and oil infrastructure in response to Prime Minister Adel Abdel Mahdi's call to "return to normal life". During the night, protesters tried to set fire to the diplomatic representation of Iran, a neighboring country and great godfather of Iraqi politics, in this holy Shiite city 100 km south of Baghdad, visited each year by millions of pilgrims. Iranian.

They deployed Iraqi flags on his perimeter wall and wrote "Free Kerbala, Iran Out". The police responded with gusts of live ammunition, killing four, according to forensic cadres.

Tahrir Square, epicenter of the protest

In recent days, the anger of the protesters who claim "the fall of the regime" focuses on Iran, one of the two powers operating in Iraq with the United States. The latter are absent from the protesters' slogans, and have not reacted strongly to the crisis that is shaking Iraq. In contrast, in October, General Qassem Soleimani, commander of the Iranian ideological army's external operations, increased his visits to Iraq. And Iranian Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei's comments, denouncing an American and Israeli "plot" have only exacerbated the Iraqis' anger.

In Baghdad, in Tahrir Square, epicenter of protest in the capital, protesters are organizing. In dozens of tents, Iraqis offer medical care, legal advice, supplies or hot dishes. Everything is offered free of charge. "Everything is provided by Iraqis, when I call my friends and tell them that I need support, the support comes in, says Ayad Kadhim Muhsen, a volunteer in France 24. Despite all the resources of the state, the government does not have what we have. "

Tahrir Square has become the model state to which Iraqis aspire. The protest, born on October 1, was marked by deadly violence that officially killed at least 260 people. The promises of early elections, reforms of the hiring system and pensions, have not appeased the anger of the Iraqis.

Significant economic impact

In Baghdad and the south of the country, most public schools are no longer open, while in several cities in the south, protesters have hung huge banners "Closed in the name of the people" on dozens of public buildings and blocked roads and bridges, paralyzing traffic on major roads.

The road leading to the port of Oum Qasr, in the south, vital for food imports from Iraq, is now cut by concrete blocks on which is inscribed "Closed by order of the people". In the harbor itself, dozens of boats took to the road without being able to unload their cargo.

In Missane, still in the south, protesters blocked two oil fields operated by Chinese companies: Halfaya, one of the largest fields in the country, the second largest producer of OPEC, and Buzurgan. In the other Shiite holy city of the country, Najaf, protesters symbolically erased the name of the street "Imam Khomeini" to rename it "October Revolution Street".

Signs that the authorities are worried about a major economic impact, Prime Minister Adel Abdel Mahdi, came out of his silence Sunday night, ensuring that "many claims have already been met" and that now must "return to normal life ".

Iraq on strike "until the fall of the regime"

An activist kidnapped

This unprecedented mobilization is threatened by a campaign of intimidation and violence, regularly denounced by the international community and human rights defenders. Media were attacked, bloggers and activists kidnapped and several figures denounced a "new Republic of fear".

On Sunday, the Government Human Rights Commission announced the kidnapping of activist and doctor Saba Mahdaoui, denouncing "organized kidnapping operations", while another activist has just been released.

Her mother and activists said she was kidnapped by "armed and masked pickup" men as she returned from Tahrir Saturday night. "This is a shame for all Iraqi society," denounced the head of the parliamentary commission for human rights.

With AFP and Reuters