6 killed in 3 blasts across Baghdad amid nationwide protests: reports

ERBIL, Kurdistan Region – Six people have been killed in three separate blasts that rocked  the Iraqi capital of Baghdad on Tuesday night, according to medics and security sources who spoke to AFP.

Two of the blasts were caused by “explosives-laden motorcycles” while a third appears to have been a roadside bomb, the sources said. The explosions occurred in three different neighborhoods, suggesting they were coordinated. 

The number of wounded is currently unknown and no one has claimed responsibility for the blasts. 

Baghdad, which had seen almost daily terrorist attacks for several years following the US-led invasion, had been enjoying a period of relative calm before mass protests broke out in October. 

Clashes between protesters and security forces in Baghdad and across the country’s south have left at least 320 dead and around 15,000 injured. 

Protesters are demanding jobs, basic public services, and action against rampant corruption. Following the violent crackdown, many are now calling for regime change.

It is not clear whether Tuesday night’s blasts are connected with the protests.

On November 15, a blast in Baghdad’s Tahrir Square killed one protester and injured 19, according to the Iraqi High Commission for Human Rights (IHCHR). 

The perpetrators of the attack have not been identified, although protesters say they have been shot at by masked men linked to pro-Iran militias.