Demos erupt in Iraq’s southern Dhi Qar, Basra provinces

By Ali Jawad

BAGHDAD (AA) - Hundreds of people on Friday continued protesting poor public services in Iraq’s southern Basra and Dhi Qar provinces, calling for the dismissal of several local officials.

For the second week in a row, Iraq’s southern provinces are witnessing angry protests, which in some cases have included acts of violence that have left a number of people dead, injured or detained.

In Basra, hundreds of protesters gathered outside the government’s provincial headquarters in Basra city despite stepped-up security measures.

“We demand the dismissal of Basra Governor Asaad al-Eidani and all of his service directors, who we hold responsible for the province’s poor public services,” protester Rafed al-Kenani told Anadolu Agency.

In Dhi Qar, meanwhile, hundreds of protesters congregated in Al-Habboubi Square in the city of Al- Nasiriyah (Dhi Qar’s provincial capital), where they too called for the dismissal of what they described as “corrupt officials”.

“Even though we have been demonstrating for two weeks now, the government and state institutions have failed to address our grievances,” protester Ahmed Raji told Anadolu Agency.

According to Raji, the protests in Dhi Qar have not been accompanied by any violent acts or arrests.

For the last two weeks, Iraq’s predominantly-Shia southern provinces have been rocked by popular demonstrations in which protesters have decried high unemployment and chronic power shortages.

Recent days have seen the protests spread from southern Iraq to a number of other provinces, including capital Baghdad.