ERBIL, Kurdistan Region – Iraq’s young protesters returned to the streets of Baghdad and other southern cities on Saturday night to oppose the new government of Mustafa al-Kadhimi, sworn in on Thursday after months of political deadlock.
Before the coronavirus pandemic placed the country on lockdown, Iraq had been rocked by months of nationwide unrest as overwhelmingly young crowds demanded jobs, services, and action against corruption.
When security forces and pro-Iran militias began attacking the protesters, killing hundreds, activists began demanding an end to foreign interference in Iraqi affairs and called for the overthrow of the political elite.
By the end of November last year, Adil Abdul-Mahdi had resigned as prime minister.
Embolden by its early success, the revolutionary wave seemed to gather pace. But by mid-March, when the lockdown measures came into force, the protests had all but petered out as a result of intimidation and exhaustion.
With a new government appointed, and the old establishment securely in place, the dormant movement erupted once again on Saturday night.
Protesters regrouped and spilled into the streets of southern cities before the seismic wave reached the capital itself on Sunday morning.
Tahrir Square, long the epicenter of the Baghdad protests, was again packed with protesters, reminiscent of scenes of unrest seen months earlier.
Activists surged towards nearby Jimhuriyah Bridge, which leads to the fortified Green Zone where government ministries and foreign diplomatic missions are housed.
Videos posted on social media appear to show activists being forced back with water cannons while protesters hurl rocks at lines of riot police.
Mohammed Jabar, an activist from southeast Iraq’s Wasit province, told Rudaw on Sunday the protests had resumed there to oppose the new government – formed by the same political parties and external agendas he and others had fought hard to overthrow.
“We resumed the protests because from the beginning we were calling for a non-partisan government,” Jabar said.
“We were always asking for a government chosen by the Iraqi street, from the revolution. We do not want a government decided by external agendas or neighboring countries,” he said.
As Iraq’s former intelligence chief, Prime Minister Kadhimi “knows who killed the protesters,” Jabar claimed, so he must expose those responsible and hold them to account.
Jabar’s brother was killed in clashes with security forces in Wasit early on in the protests last October. Activists who marched and occupied squares across the country were met live ammunition and military grade teargas.
At least 600 protesters and members of the security forces were killed and more than 18,000 injured over the months since the movement emerged in October, according to human rights monitor Amnesty International.
On Friday, Amnesty urged Kadhimi to prioritize human rights, take action on domestic violence, protect communities accused of collaborating with the Islamic State (ISIS) while under the group’s control, and launch “thorough and independent investigations” into the killing of protesters.
Kadhimi was sworn into office in the early hours of Thursday morning. In his first cabinet meeting on Saturday, the new PM decreed the Supreme Judicial Council to release of all protesters detained by the former government.
“Following the decision by the Prime Minister Mustafa al-Kadhimi on 9/5/2020, the Supreme Judicial Council directed all the courts in Iraq to release all protesters who were detained in the past months,” the order reads.
The resumption of protests was widely expected, as few of the movement’s demands have actually been met and public anger continues to simmer.
Sporadic unrest is likely to continue until Kadhimi calls fresh nationwide elections and those who fired on protesters are identified and brought to justice.
However, public health fears amid the coronavirus crisis are likely scale down any significant comeback.
“Today’s escalation was rejected by the public in al-Haboubi Square in Nasiriyah and the people of Dhi Qar” who are mindful of social distancing measures, protester Muhanad* told Rudaw on Sunday.
He insisted the protesters respect public health concerns, but are determined to resurrect their movement.
“The current escalation and protests, as well as clashes with security forces, is an attempt to drag the province into a political conflict, while we are fully committed to the coronavirus measures and the lockdown,” he said.
Iraq has been in a partial lockdown for almost two months to prevent the further spread of COVID-19.
Health authorities have recorded 2,767 infections nationwide, including the Kurdistan Region, as of Sunday evening. Of this number, 1,734 have recovered and 109 have died.
*Names have been changed in this report to protect sources
Editing by Robert Edwards
