More than 60 people have died in renewed anti-government protests across Iraq, officials said Saturday, with clashes breaking out as demonstrators turned their fury against the government and paramilitary officers.
The deathtoll from protests this month has soared to 220, including dozens killed sinceFriday as they torched government buildings or offices belonging to factions ofthe Hashed al-Shaabi paramilitary force.
Thedemonstrations first erupted on October 1, with protesters railing againstgovernment corruption and unemployment, while a second wave broke out lateThursday. The latest round of demonstrations has been notably violent, with 63people killed and more than 2,000 wounded over just two days, according to theIraqi Human Rights Commission.
Three protesters were killed in the capital Baghdad on Saturday, with medics and officials reporting trauma wounds sustained by tear gas canisters lobbed at demonstrators. But the majority of victims have been in the country's Shiite-majority south, where protesters torched dozens of provincial government buildings, party offices, and Hashed centers.
As perpolice sources, on Saturday, three people were shot dead while setting fire toa local official's home in the southern province of Dhi Qar. The previousnight, 12 protesters died in Diwaniyah while setting fire to the headquartersof the powerful Badr organisation. Top Hashed commanders have threatened"revenge" after their offices were attacked, and denounced those they said aimedat sowing "discord and chaos" in the country.
In a bid to contain the violence, security forces announced curfews across most of Iraq's southern provinces – but brief protests still took place in Diwaniyah, Nasiriyah, Babylon, and Najaf. In the southern port city of Basra, however, protesters failed to come out in large numbers after security forces strictly enforced a curfew.
The Hashedwas founded in 2014 to fight the Islamic State group but its factions havesince been ordered to incorporate into the state security services.
The UnitedNations said it was "tragic" to see renewed violence but also warned against"armed spoilers". Protesters gathered in Baghdad's emblematic Tahrir(Liberation) Square on Saturday morning despite efforts by riot police to clearthem with tear gas.
"It's enough -theft, looting, gangs, mafias, deep state, whatever. Get out! Let us see a (functioning) state. We don't want anything, just let us live," he added as puffs of smoke from tear gas rose behind him," said one protester, referring to perceived cronyism and corruption in the country.
Protesters so far have seemed unimpressed by the government's efforts. "They told people: 'Go home, we'll give you pensions and come up with a solution'. They tricked us," said one of the rare woman protesters on Saturday, her young son at her side.
Prime Minister Adel Abdel Mahdi has proposed a laundry list of reforms, including hiring drives, increased pensions and a cabinet reshuffle. New education and health ministers were approved by parliament in a session earlier this month, the only time it was able to meet since protests began.
