Baghdad (AFP)

Two anti-government protesters were killed on Tuesday and several injured in Iraq, where a local TV station that has covered the protest movement in recent months has been banned from broadcasting.

Protesters keep up the pressure despite the violence that has left more than 480 dead, most of them demonstrators, since October 1.

On Tuesday, a protester was shot dead in clashes with police in the southern city of Kout, according to medical and security sources.

In Baghdad, Mohammad Alwan, a professor at Mustansariyah University, was shot and killed while driving his car, medical and security sources said. He used to demonstrate in Tahrir Square in the capital.

Protesters near Tahrir tried to block roads and threw stones at the police, who responded with live ammunition and tear gas.

Nearly 15 protesters were injured, doctors said.

Other demonstrations, punctuated by clashes, took place in the south, in Basra, Amarah, Hilla, Nassiriya, Najaf.

"We renew our demands for a Prime Minister and a new electoral law. If (the leaders) procrastinate, we will intensify our peaceful movement," said Ajwad Ali, protester in Nassiriya.

Protesters demand in particular early elections and denounce corruption.

- Closed chain -

The clashes came after the month-long shutdown of local television station Al-Dijla, which has covered protests daily for the past few months, despite pressure.

"Interior Ministry forces closed all of Al-Dijla's offices in Baghdad yesterday (Monday) evening and asked the teams to leave," an employee of the station said.

An Interior Ministry official confirmed that members of the security forces went to Al-Dijla's offices in Baghdad on Monday, where 80 workers work. Fifty others work at the chain's headquarters in the Jordanian capital Amman, from where it broadcasts.

"The Iraqi government has asked Jordan to stop broadcasting for one month on the basis of an Iraqi complaint," said the official, who declined to be named.

As of Monday, only an image of the chain's logo was visible on its channel.

On January 10, unidentified men raided the premises of Baghdad, and a correspondent and a cameraman for the chain were killed in Basra.

Before being killed, correspondent Ahmad Abdessamad, 37, said he had been threatened by Iraqi armed groups for his criticism of the powerful Iranian neighbor.

On January 20, Al-Dijla presenter Nabil Jassem argued live with the Prime Minister's spokesperson for military affairs, Abdelkarim Khalaf, who refused to answer a question about the number of wounded during the events.

"Al-Dijla is paying the price for the truth," said its administrative director, Jamal al-Karbouli.

Haidar al-Maytham, a member of the Iraqi journalists' union, said "political disagreements and differences of opinion between the station's administration and Iraqi officials led to the closure."

NGOs have called on Iraq to protect journalists covering the protests.

© 2020 AFP