Protests renewed strongly in Baghdad and parts of southern Iraq, to condemn the blackout, in extremely hot weather, while explosions rocked a military base south of the Iraqi capital.
Demonstrations took place last night in the Tahrir Square in Baghdad and in the governorates of Najaf, Karbala, Nasiriyah, Diwaniyah and Wasit; Protest against power outages for long times, at a time when the temperature exceeds 50 degrees.
Iraqi local sources said that a number of demonstrators were wounded - some of them seriously - as a result of the intervention of Iraqi security forces against protesters who tried to cut roads leading to Tahrir Square leading to the Green Zone.
While local sources and witnesses reported 7 injuries and suffocation as a result of the use of tear gas canisters, the High Commissioner for Human Rights in Iraq pointed to the fall of "martyrs and wounded", without providing any outcome.
In Tahrir Square, the demonstrators chanted slogans condemning the deterioration of services, and demanded that the corrupt be referred to the judiciary, and they also called on Prime Minister Mustafa Al-Kazemi to solve the problem of the power cuts that Iraq has suffered for many years during the summer, especially.
Protesters said they were continuing their demonstrations until the government responded to their demands.
In exchange for accusations by the security forces of suppressing the demonstrators, the spokesman for the Commander-in-Chief of the Iraqi Armed Forces said at dawn today, Monday, that the security forces have clear and strict directives not to be exposed to any demonstrator even if he tries to provoke them.
Iraq had witnessed since last October a wave of widespread protests denouncing corruption, unemployment and deteriorating services, and more than 600 people were killed during these protests, which stopped last March due to the outbreak of the Corona virus.
And last week, demonstrations took place in Dhi Qar Governorate (southern Iraq) for 5 consecutive days to condemn the interruption of electricity, and to prolong the dismissal of all local officials due to poor services.
A warning to the government
The High Commissioner for Human Rights in Iraq warned the government against the escalation of popular anger in the central and southern provinces of the country because of the deterioration in the health and service reality in these governorates.
The Commission pointed out that the decline in the supply of citizens with electrical energy reflects negatively on health institutions and those who are sick in general, and those infected with Corona virus in particular.
Explosions at
a base On the other hand, explosions took place yesterday at Saqr Air Force Base in the Saidiya area (south of Baghdad).
The security media cell of the Joint Iraqi Operations Command said that the explosions took place inside a warehouse of ammunition and ammunition belonging to the Federal Police inside the base due to the high temperatures.
The residents of al-Doura mentioned that they heard explosions inside the base, and saw smoke plumes rising. Saqr's base includes the headquarters of several Iraqi security forces, including the PMF.
Security sources said that the warehouse where the blasts occurred was the same one that caught fire in August last year, at which time one person was killed and about 30 others were injured.
Last year, several explosions struck bases where the PMF militants stationed, and Iraqi factions accused Israel and the United States of targeting those bases.