• Iraq, shooting at demonstrators in Baghdad: at least 16 dead

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December 07, 2019The home of Shiite leader Moqtada Sadr was targeted by a drone in Najaf, an Iraqi city about 160 kilometers south of Baghdad. Local media reported that the leader was not at home.

A bomb launched from the drone struck the house of the Iraqi religious.

Moqtada Sadr is the head of a party that leads the country's largest parliamentary political group.

A figure close to Sadr, Saleh Muhammad al-Iraqi, claims that the house was targeted "in response to the leader's order" to protect protesters in Baghdad where an anti-government protest has been underway for two months.

The fighting continues, victims
Last night's attack in Baghdad rose to 16 dead and at least a hundred injured, where armed men aboard four cars opened fire on protesters in al-Khilani Square, in central Baghdad. A number of witnesses told the DPA, while the Interior Ministry provided a balance sheet of four victims and 80 wounded.

Among the victims also a photojournalist, Ahmed Mehna; hundreds of protesters attended this morning at his funeral. The authorities have announced the opening of an investigation into the attack, one of the bloodiest since protests against the government began in October.

In the square and surrounding area, dozens of soldiers have been deployed this morning to protect peaceful protesters, said general, Qais al-Mahamdoui, head of operations in Baghdad.