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Multiple stabbings after Iran-backed militia supporters join Baghdad protest

3 hours ago
 
 

Multiple stabbings after Iran-backed militia supporters join Baghdad protest
Pro-PMF supporters reportedly joined the protest after calls by Kata'ib Hezbollah, one of the most prominent of Iraq's Iran-backed militias militias. (Photo: Social Media)
 
 

ERBIL (Kurdistan 24) – Just after supporters of Iranian-backed Popular Mobilization Force (PMF) militias briefly joined ongoing protests on Thursday in Baghdad's Tahrir Square, demonstrators say that 15 people among the crowds were stabbed.

It was not clear whether the stabbings were done by the militia supporters or others. The Associated Press quoted one protester as saying they "might have been perpetrated by the parties [aligned with the PMF] or someone who wants to ignite problems with the parties."

While the supporters were in the square, they voiced support for top Shia cleric Ali al-Sistani and waved flags of the PMF, or Hashd al-Shaabi, as they are known in Arabic.

"Death to America," read one of the signs, with another banner reading "Death to Israel."  These are common anti-West slogans used by Iran and its proxies in the Middle East.

The pro-PMF march reportedly came after calls by one of the most prominent PMF militias known as Kata'ib Hezbollah, a US-designated foreign terrorist organization.

One media source said that some demonstrators also raised signs expressing "support for peace" and preventing "sabotage," a word often used by Iraqi officials who claim that foreign-backed infiltrators among the crowds intentionally derail protests with violence. Iraqi media close to Iran again alleged "saboteurs" were among demonstrators.

The Al-Atijah satellite channel, a Kata'ib Hezbollah-affiliated organization, broadcasted scenes from the demonstration.

Other media sources have warned that pro-Sistani demonstrations could turn into counter-protests and result in "clashes" at Tahrir Square, which has been the site of anti-government demonstrations for over two months.

Another pro-PMF rally is scheduled for Friday.

Although slightly limited in scope since they began in October, the Baghdad protests, which quickly spread to other major cities in southern and central Iraqi provinces, have been ongoing despite the resignation of Prime Minister Adil Abdul Mahdi. Last week, he said he had decided to step down after calls for change in leadership by Sistani, as casualties from demonstrations rose to over 400 deaths and close to 17,000 wounded. 

 

Iraqi forces have denied being behind a large part of the deaths of demonstrators, while PMF militias reportedly deployed snipers to shoot protesters, killing dozens at least, according to initial estimations in November.

Protesters have been calling for the expulsion of the political elite from power after years of rampant corruption, severe unemployment rates, and chronically poor public services. 

Editing by John J. Catherine

Updated12 minutes ago
 

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Middle East

Death toll in Iraq protests reaches 460, over 17,400 injured: Iraqi rights commission

December 04-2019     03:28 PM
 
 

Death toll in Iraq protests reaches 460, over 17,400 injured: Iraqi rights commission
Iraqi mourners carry the coffin of an anti-government protester who died from injuries sustained in previous confrontations with security forces, during his funeral in the capital Baghdad on Dec. 3, 2019. (Photo: AFP/Sabah Arar)
 
 

ERBIL (Kurdistan 24) – The death toll in Iraq’s anti-government protests has reached at least 460, with tens of thousands more injured, Iraq’s Independent High Commission for Human Rights said on Wednesday.

“At least 460 protestors were killed in October and November in various central and southern cities, including Baghdad,” Ali al-Bayati, a representative of the commission, said in a statement.

Bayati added that civilians wounded during the demonstrations surpassed 17,400, with over 3,000 of them permanently disabled.

The protests in Iraq reflect widespread dissatisfaction with the economy, a call for more jobs, the dismal state of public services, and widespread government corruption.

The United Nations, as well as Amnesty International, have called for an end to the bloodshed and urged security forces to show restraint against protestors.

 

Demonstrators in Iraq are calling for radical change in Iraq’s political system, which they say fails to address their needs, but, rather, serves the interests of a small governing elite.

The developments have forced Iraqi Prime Minister Adil Abdul Mahdi to hand in his resignation. In a special session held on Sunday in Baghdad, the Iraqi Parliament voted to accept Abdul Mahdi’s resignation.

According to Bayati, the prime minister’s resignation will not end the unrest in Iraq because the country is in “an ongoing political and security crisis.”

“The government’s resignation will not suffice to absorb the anger of the protestors.”

UpdatedDecember 04-2019     03:30 PM
 
 
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Iraq Pulse

Iranian consulates torched in Najaf and Karbala

Meanwhile, officials in Karbala claimed that most of those killed during protests were members of security forces. They denied knowledge of local “martyrs” among peaceful protesters or anti-Iran sentiment.

In the city, a heavy security presence loomed, and concrete barriers blocked roads lined with charred walls. Protesters and security forces reportedly clashed near the Karbala regional government buildings Dec. 2.

Allegations of mass killings of protesters in the city circulated widely among residents and on social media in previous weeks. Major media outlets reported at least 18 killed on Oct. 29 alone.

The cities of Karbala and Najaf are sacred to Shiite Muslims, and the reports sparked outcry among the mainly Shiite protesters in other parts of the country.

In interviews with Al-Monitor in mid-November, Karbala's police media chief and the deputy security chief for Karbala’s shrines painted a picture of violent infiltrators. Both said that claims of anti-Iran sentiment among those “peacefully demanding their rights” were attempts to exploit the situation by "those with an agenda."

Qassim Musleh, the deputy head of security at the Karbala shrines, said "Israel and America" were trying to create divisions among the Shiite community in Iraq.

Protests in central and southern Iraq began Oct. 1 and over 400 have reportedly been killed. Reliable figures are hard to get, and casualty counts are likely underestimated.

Musleh is also the head of the Shiite-led Popular Mobilization Units (PMU) for Anbar province, meaning he holds both a governmental position and one within the religious establishment. 

The vulnerability of the holy city of Karbala, Musleh told Al-Monitor in 2018, is why the local Sunni population of Jurf al-Sakr in nearby Babil province would “never be allowed to return.” Jurf al-Sakr is currently under the control of Iran-linked Kataib Hezbollah. The PMU retook Jurf al-Sakr — now Jurf al-Nasr — from the Islamic State in 2014. Many say Kataib Hezbollah use the security of Karbala as a justification for the forces' continued occupation of the town.

Musleh said in mid-November, “We support the demands of the protesters who are against corrupt parties.”

On the first night of the protests, he said, “there were 105 members of the security forces that were injured and not a single protester,” but some nights later, “rioters tried to destroy the government building and the Bank of Agriculture.”

“This violence is rejected by both sides: the security forces and the protesters," he said, "The Marjaiya [or senior Shiite clergy] say that violence is forbidden, and we take orders instructions from them.”

Musleh added that, in his role at the shrines, he and others had helped the peaceful protesters.

“We saw that toilets were needed and so we sent mobile toilets," he said. "Then we started providing three meals a day. We responded to the Marjaiya’s call to support the people who want to fix the government.” He said that thousands of employees of both Imam Hussein and Imam Abbas shrines had taken part in the protests.

Musleh said, “The PMU are providing security and protecting the border, but they are not officially taking part as PMU. If they are on leave, they have the freedom to do so. But we are part of the security forces and we cannot leave our positions to protest.”

“Hundreds are in the streets,” he added. “It is difficult for the police to understand who is peaceful and who is not.”

The road to the main protest square is blocked by concrete barriers. Vehicle traffic has been barred from the area, and a wide and empty road branches off the roundabout.

In late afternoon, police presence in the city is reinforced by black armored vehicles that arrive in waves. Security forces then prepare for possible attempts to reach government buildings. Yet the buildings “are empty now after the government’s decision to stop their work,” Col. Ali Abbas al-Ghanimi, the police media relations chief, told Al-Monitor.

Problems, Ghanimi said, don’t begin until after 8 or 9 p.m. The protests “started peacefully, but then rioters from outside the province came and started using bricks and stones to cause destruction and tried to burn” government buildings, schools and banks.

Ghanimi claimed that “10 security officers had been injured” for every protester. He said that in the main protest square, "you will not see" protesters chanting against Iran.

Shops were shuttered on streets adjacent to the concrete barriers that separated protesters and security forces. A young man who said he had been detained by security forces for several days, allegedly for filming the protests, interrupted his conversation with Al-Monitor to ask a street coffee seller if the two men walking by were “mukhabarat,” or intelligence officers.

On the side of the concrete barriers opposite the security forces, reached by taking a two-minute detour, a festive atmosphere reigned. Tents were set up and young people socialized, took selfies, danced and argued amid book stalls and free food.

In the center of the main square, photos of “martyrs” were displayed as well as banners, including one calling for “countries that support peace, freedom and democracy to stop Iran and expose its actions before the international community.”

A protester said there used to be more banners complaining of Iranian interference in Iraqi affairs in this square, “but one night someone came and took them down.”

Less than two weeks later, the Iranian Consulate in Najaf was under attack.

 
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