Iraqi protests 'illegal' says security commander

ERBIL (Kurdistan 24) – An Iraqi Emergency Response Unit Commander on Thursday declared the protests in central and southern Iraq “illegal” as they rage on for two weeks straight.

“The demonstrations are illegal because they [the protesters] don’t have official permits,” Commander of the Iraqi elite police forces, Major General Thamer al-Husseini, told Kurdistan 24 on Thursday. He echoed Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi’s words, claiming there are “subversive elements among the protesters.”

Instances of violence, however, can be found in almost all mass demonstrations where the public voice their concerns on the future of their country, Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK) politburo member, Mala Bakhtiyar, told Kurdistan 24 on Tuesday.

Bakhtiyar’s comments came after a meeting headed by Iraqi President, Fuad Masum, and attended by representatives of major Kurdish parties and Iraqi coalitions to discuss the need to ramp up efforts in forming government and keep protests peaceful.

The demonstrations which started in Basra and quickly spread to several other southern provinces in Iraq were sparked by high unemployment, poor public services, and frustration with the country’s crippling corruption.

The demonstrations are set to enter their third week and the Iraqi government, in anticipation of calls for a million-man demonstration, has bolstered its security presence in the capital in particular.

During the interview, Maj. Gen. Husseini pointed out that, so far, “we’ve arrested a number of protesters” whom the Iraqi security apparatus has deemed to be “seditious elements,” in response to “attacks on governmental organizations.”

On Tuesday, the Health Ministry put casualty figures for civilians at eight deaths and 56 injuries, though protest organizers claim they are in the hundreds. The Defense Ministry also asserted that 262 members of the Iraqi security forces have been injured.

Editing by Nadia Riva