UN highlights ‘serious human rights violations’ in third report on Iraq protests

ERBIL (Kurdistan 24) – Serious human rights violations are continuing amid ongoing anti-government protests in Iraq, the United Nations Assistance Mission to Iraq (UNAMI) said on Wednesday.

In its third report on the updates of Iraqi protests, UNAMI revealed ongoing “violations of the rights to life, physical integrity, liberty, and security” of demonstrators across central and southern provinces in Iraq.

The report comes amid ongoing anti-government protests in Iraq that have left over 450 people dead and at least 17,600 others injured in clashes between demonstrators and security forces.

“Iraqi security forces have an obligation to maintain public order and to protect Government buildings and public property, but restraint must be shown…to prevent situations in which the use of excessive force may occur,” the UNAMI report read.

The Iraqi government “must spare no effort to protect peaceful protestors from violence by armed actors operating outside state control as well as those with formal and informal reporting lines within the state.”

The protests in Iraq reflect widespread dissatisfaction with the economy, lack of access to jobs, the dismal state of public services, and widespread government corruption.

The UN, as well as Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch, have previously called for an end to the bloodshed and urged security forces to show restraint against protestors.

Related Article: Iraq to prosecute over 40 security forces responsible for killing protestors: report

Demonstrators in Iraq are calling for radical change in Iraq’s political system, which they say fails to address their needs and instead serves the interests of a small governing elite.

The developments have forced Iraqi Prime Minister Adil Abdul Mahdi to hand in his resignation. In a special session held last week in Baghdad, the Iraqi Parliament voted to accept Abdul Mahdi’s resignation. 

Editing by John J. Catherine