Iraq crackdown kills nearly 40 after Iran mission torched
Nasiriyah, Iraq, Nov 29 (AFP/APP): Iraq’s protest-hit cities saw one of their bloodiest days yet on Thursday as a government crackdown killed nearly 40 demonstrators following the dramatic torching of an Iranian consulate.
The country’s capital and south have been rocked by the worst street unrest since the 2003 US-led invasion that toppled Saddam Hussein, with a protest movement venting fury at the government and its backers in neighbouring Iran.
Thursday’s violence brought the total death toll since early October to more than 390, with more than 15,000 wounded, according to an AFP tally.
The highest toll was in the flashpoint southern city of Nasiriyah, where 25 people were killed when security forces used “excessive force” to break up rallies, according to the Iraqi Human Rights Commission.
Another two protesters were killed in Baghdad and ten died in the Shiite shrine city of Najaf, where demonstrators had torched the Iranian consulate late Wednesday.
Crowds outraged at Tehran’s political influence in Iraq had stormed and burned down the mission, yelling “Victory to Iraq!” and “Iran out!”
In response, Prime Minister Adel Abdel Mahdi early Thursday ordered military chiefs to deploy in several restive provinces to “impose security and restore order”, the army said.
But by the afternoon, following the bloody crackdown in the restive southern city of Nasiriyah, the premier had already sacked one commander, General Jamil Shummary.
The governor of Dhi Qar province, of which Nasiriyah is the capital, resigned later on that evening.
More than 200 people were also wounded as security forces cleared sit-ins with live fire, medics and security sources said.
