The Iraqi government denied any deaths in the latest confrontations in Baghdad, and talked about the involvement of a party other than security forces in the targeting of demonstrators with a weapon that caused many casualties, while demonstrations and sit-ins continued in the capital and southern provinces.

According to medical and security sources, four demonstrators were killed and 62 others were injured yesterday by tear gas canisters fired by the security forces towards the protesters near Al-Senak Bridge adjacent to Tahrir Square in central Baghdad.

However, the Baghdad Operations Command said what it described as the allegations of deaths yesterday were incorrect, noting that the Ministry of Health did not inform them of any deaths among the demonstrators in the past two days.

Protesters said that security forces intensified early yesterday morning the firing of tear gas and rubber bullets in the vicinity of Tahrir Square, where protesters sit, which at times witnessed the mobilization of tens of thousands of them in the framework of weeks of protests, which demand for deep political and economic reforms.

A crowd of protesters continued to sit in Tahrir Square tonight, while Iraqi security forces tried during the day to keep protesters away from bridges leading to government positions in the Green Zone.

Witnesses from Tahrir Square said two sound bombs exploded late on Thursday near the Republic Bridge leading to the square where protesters were gathering, leaving no injuries.

Concurrently, a fire broke out on the top floor of the Turkish restaurant building overlooking Tahrir Square, which has become a refuge for hundreds of protesters.

Al-Jazeera director Walid Ibrahim said the protesters said they feared the blasts around Tahrir Square would send them a message.

Ongoing protests
Hundreds of students and teachers demonstrated in the southern provinces of Basra, Dhi Qar and Diwaniyah in response to a call from the teachers' union.

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Sources on the island said the demonstrations came out in support of the demonstrators' demands for political and economic reform.

Also in southern Iraq, demonstrators yesterday again closed schools and most official departments in Hilla, Diwaniyah and Kut.

In Nasiriyah, security forces imposed a curfew in al-Gharraf area north of the city and deployed reinforcements in an attempt to control the situation.

Another party
Meanwhile, Iraqi Defense Minister Najah al-Shammari said that the weapon currently used in firing tear gas against the demonstrators is not the kind of security institution owned by the Iraqi security establishment, but another weapon that differs in technical terms.

Al-Shammari added that the current weapon used to fire tear gas is capable of throwing the bomb to a range of up to 300 meters, while the government type is 75 meters.

He said that the disclosure conducted by the concerned authorities on the dead, who were directly hit by tear gas, showed that they are not imported by the government or any other Iraqi body.

Al-Shammari pointed out that these reasons, in addition to the poor use of this weapon, had a major role in increasing the number of victims of the demonstrators. The minister accused a party other than security forces of killing demonstrators and killing security forces as well.

As protests continued, Iraqi Prime Minister Adel Abdul Mahdi held a meeting in Baghdad yesterday with security leaders during which they assessed the security situation in the country, in light of the continued popular movement and measures taken by government forces to maintain security and stability in Baghdad and the rest of the provinces.