Dozens of victims, after bloody clashes between security and demonstrators in Nasiriyah

ERBIL (Kurdistan 24) – The Iraqi Human Rights Commission announced 147 people were killed and injured in clashes between demonstrators and security forces in the southern Iraqi city of Nasiriyah over the last five days.

Dozens of protesters gathered in front of the governorate building for the fifth day in a row on Friday demanding the dismissal of the governor, an end to corruption and more job opportunities for the unemployed. Neither Interior Minister Othman al-Ghanmi nor Abdul Ghani al-Asadi, the head of the National Security Agency, who were visiting the city, were able to calm the angry crowd.

The High Commission for Human Rights in Iraq condemned the state of insecurity in Dhi Qar province, which caused casualties among the demonstrators and the security forces.

Iraqi Prime Minister Mustafa al-Kadhimi named Asadi governor for Dhi Qar province late on Friday after Nazem al-Waeli resigned his post.

The Commission said in a statement on Friday that “the clashes led to the death and wounding of 147 demonstrators and security forces as a result of the use of live bullets, tear-gases, stones, and sharp tools, in addition to burning the governorate building.”

Local Nassiriya TV announced that at least three protesters were shot dead by security forces on Friday, and one demonstrator died during clashes on Thursday.

The commission warned, "the continuing insecurity, [and] the failure of the government and security establishment's role in maintaining security and safety to address the exacerbating problems, will lead to chaos and the continued fall of a large number of victims."

The Commission called on Prime Minister Mustafa al-Kadhimi to take over the Dhi Qar file and "stop the bloodshed."

At the same time, the blood bank in Nasiriyah said that it was lacking supplies in all blood types, calling on all citizens to go to hospitals to donate blood in order to help the injured.

These developments come a few days before a planned trip by the Roman Catholic Pope Francis to Iraq, which includes a visit to the historic Ur region in Nasiriyah as part of a tour that faces a number of security and health challenges in light of the high number of COVID-19 infections throughout the country.

Editing by Joanne Stocker-Kelly