Iraqi security disperses protesters, and Najaf protesters vow to escalate

Iraqi security forces fired live bullets and tear gas to disperse hundreds of demonstrators in Baghdad and the city of Kut, in conjunction with the Najaf protesters launching a deadline for the authorities to implement the demands, while protests continued in other governorates in the center and south of the country, to demand comprehensive political and economic reforms and fight corruption.

A medical source in the Baghdad Health Department said that at least nine protesters suffered from suffocation due to inhaling tear gas in the center of the Iraqi capital.

Eyewitnesses reported that the confrontations continued in Al-Khilani Square and its surrounding areas, reaching Al-Wathba Square for the fourth consecutive day, noting that no injuries were recorded on Tuesday.

The Baghdad Operations Command had previously said that seven policemen were wounded as a result of an unidentified throwing of a hand grenade among the demonstrators in the area between Al-Khilani and Al-Wathba.

In Kut, the center of Wasit Province, south of Baghdad, 15 protesters were injured by suffocation of tear gas, in the city center, according to a medical source.

A Bassam spokesman told the police that violent confrontations are taking place in central Kut between the demonstrators and the security forces, indicating that the demonstrators tried to close several major streets in the city center, but that the security forces are trying to disperse them with gas bombs and water cannons as well as live fire in the air.

Najaf delay
In the city of Najaf, protesters have given authorities until next Saturday to respond to their demands or will intend to escalate the protests.

A statement issued by protesters protesting in the center of Najaf said that their demands include "choosing a prime minister who is not subject to controversy, resolving the new election law and ratifying it, and setting a date for early elections not to exceed six months."

The protesters said that by Saturday they would escalate the protests by "closing the external roads of the governorate, closing all non-service districts, and preventing members of the House of Representatives from entering the governorate for their negative role in procrastination and procrastination."

The statement stated that "if procrastination and procrastination continue, the protesters will resort to more aggressive escalation methods against the authorities."

Since Saturday, Iraqi security forces have launched a coordinated campaign to disperse protesters in squares they have been protesting for months in an effort to end protests, using force and live fire, killing and wounding dozens.

The recent developments are considered a major escalation in the anti-government protests that erupted at the beginning of last October, and were punctuated by violence that left hundreds of dead and thousands of wounded.