Clashes break out at protests over arrested activists in southern Iraq

BAGHDAD -- Hundreds of protesters gathered Friday in the Iraqi city of Nasiriyah demanding the release of activists arrested over earlier demonstrations, with clashes breaking out between protesters and security forces.

The city in the southern province of Dhi Qar has frequently been a flashpoint of anti-government discontent.

The renewed protests come five years after the outbreak of mass anti-government protests in the Iraqi capital and southern provinces calling for reforms.

Protesters Friday called for the release of a group of detained activists who had participated in the October 2019 demonstrations as well as in more recent protests, saying that the legal cases against them were “retaliatory.” They called for the local police chief to step down. The gathering was attended by a number of Iraqi legislators who support the protest movement.

Security forces tried to disperse the protesters using smoke bombs, and all roads leading to Al-Haboubi Square were blocked with barbed wire.

An official with the Dhi Qar police, who spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to comment, said that 11 security personnel and nine protesters were injured in clashes. A statement issued by the police command said 21 of its members were injured. It did not mentioned injured protesters.

Provincial council member Ahmed Al-Khafaji said that the council had held an emergency session Friday evening that came out with “several decisions against the backdrop of today’s events." He said the council supported "stopping the raids and searches of activists’ homes and pursuing them, allowing activists to settle their legal matters with the police stations in their areas, and emphasizing the non-use of live ammunition against demonstrators.”

From October to December 2019, Iraq witnessed the largest protest movement since 2003, leading to the fall of the government and the adoption of a new electoral law by parliament.

Hundreds of protesters were killed and thousands injured as Iraqi security forces used live ammunition and snipers in a violent crackdown and many more arrested.