The scene of the Iraqi police beating and arresting a young protester in the city of Nasiriyah in the southern province of Dhi Qar, after he fled to the school building to escape those forces, sparked widespread anger on social media, prompting Prime Minister Mustafa Al-Kazemi to apologize for this behavior.

Today, Al-Kazemi apologized to the director of the central prep school in Dhi Qar province, after riot control forces entered it and arrested the demonstrator. He said that he apologized for the actions of the security forces and hoped that they “did not hurt the feelings of students or teachers.

Al-Kazemi's office published a video recording of the phone call he made with the director of the middle school, in which he said that the behavior of the security personnel does not represent the behavior of all security forces in the governorate, and also called for the restoration of calm in the city of Nasiriyah.

Incident details

The scene shows a group of police pulling out a young demonstrator after beating him in the vicinity of Al-Haboubi Square, the center of peaceful protest and sit-in in Nasiriya.

Iraqis shared the video that documented the incident, leveling harsh criticism of the Iraqi security forces over their handling of protesters.

Writer Omar Habib commented, "A person is dragged, beaten, and humiliated like this! Such an issue should not go unnoticed, as these offend the efforts and sacrifices of the security forces."

With what custom ...


in what morals ...


in what law ...


in what law ...


with what respect for a person ...

A person is dragged, beaten and insulted like this ..

Such an issue should not go unnoticed, as these abuse the efforts and sacrifices of the security forces ... pic.twitter.com/lxqWfHTIEY

- Omar Habeeb ||

Omar Habeeb (@TheOmarHabeeb) January 11, 2021

Journalist Abdullah Salam al-Jumaili wrote, "This scene is not at the Palestinian-Israeli checkpoints, but rather in the city of Nasiriyah, and the victim, even if he fulfills the conditions of the accused, is nothing more than a chaotic and a search for a homeland."

This scene is not at the Palestinian-Israeli checkpoints, but rather in the city of Nasiriyah, and the victim, even if he fulfills the conditions of the accused, is nothing more than a chaos fanatic and a searcher for a # homeland, as a result, he does not have a record of human rights violations, and he is not skilled at "straying and wandering." The complainant to God! # Our cause_the cause of the homeland is looted pic.twitter.com/FWmJqiparv

- Abdullah Salam Al-Jumaili (@ Abd94_s) January 11, 2021

Meanwhile, the Iraqi Observatory for Human Rights commented that "the Iraqi government continues to crack down on demonstrators."

The Iraqi government continues to crack down on protesters.

pic.twitter.com/XeZ1yswbI4

- The Iraqi Observatory for Human Rights (@IOHRiraq) January 11, 2021

The city of Nasiriyah is witnessing almost daily popular protests to demand a solution to the city's service problems and to provide job opportunities for its people.