Basra/Erbil, Iraq: Iraq's parliament on Friday announced an emergency meeting after a curfew was imposed in the southern city of Basra following a fresh outbreak of deadly protests over poor public services and as shells were fired into Baghdad's fortified Green Zone.
Lawmakers and ministers will meet on Saturday to discuss the water contamination crisis which has triggered the protests, parliament said in a statement.
"At the request of 54 members of parliament, the leader of parliament has agreed to hold a special session to discuss the problems, solutions and recent developments in Basra," a statement from parliament said.
A curfew was imposed in the southern Iraqi city of Basra on Thursday night as a fresh outbreak of violent protests over poor public services left one person dead and 35 injured.
Oil-rich Basra has been the epicentre of protests that have rocked Iraq since July, with anger fuelled by pollution of the water supply that left 30,000 people in hospital.
Eight people have been killed since Tuesday as crowds have clashed with security forces and hurled Molotov cocktails at the regional government headquarters.
Thousands of demonstrators converged in central Basra Thursday after local officials decided to scrap an earlier curfew imposed by central authorities in Baghdad, with the atmosphere appearing calmer than in previous days.
Protesters chanting "Iran out, out; Basra remains free!" have set the Iranian consulate on fire in Basra, Iraq's third-largest city on Friday, according to reports.
Protests in Basra have been ongoing since the start of the week. Basra has been wracked by protests over the decrepit state of public services all this week.
Major developments: 🔴 Iraqi protesters burn down the Iranian consulate in Basra #breaking #basra #iran #iraq pic.twitter.com/F5oJEBOggM
— Steven nabil (@thestevennabil) September 7, 2018
Mehdi Al-Tamimi, head of Basra's human rights council, said 10 demonstrators have been killed since Tuesday in clashes with security forces as anger boils over after the hospitalisation of 30,000 people who had drunk polluted water.
Prime Minister Haider Al-Abadi and key ministers are to attend the parliament session, which was demanded by populist cleric Moqtada Sadr, whose political bloc won the largest number of seats in May elections although a new government has yet to be formed.
The rare assault by unidentified attackers on the Green Zone, which houses parliament, government offices and the US embassy, caused no casualties or damage, Baghdad's security chief said.
In Basra, the epicentre of protests that have rocked Iraq since July, demonstrators on Thursday set fire to the local government headquarters and both political party and militia offices.
The fire spread across Basra's massive government complex, with witnesses saying it tore through offices housing state TV channel Iraqiya.
The nearby governor's residence was also set ablaze, AFP journalists reported.
'Government doesn't care'
At least 24 people have been killed in the demonstrations since they erupted in Basra on July 8.
Human rights activists have accused the security forces of opening fire on the demonstrators, while the government has blamed provocateurs in the crowds and say troops have been ordered not to use live rounds.
"The people protest and the government doesn't care, treats them as vandals," said Ali Saad, a 25-year-old at the rally on Thursday attended by thousands of demonstrators.
"Nobody (here) is a vandal. The people are fed up, so yes they throw stones and burn tyres because nobody cares," he told AFP.
Ahmed Kazem, who was also at the protest, urged leaders to respond to the demands of the demonstrators "so that the situation doesn't degenerate".
Demands
The 42-year-old said their demands included "public services, water, electricity and jobs".
For Tamimi, the anger on Basra streets was "in response to the government's intentional policy of neglect" of the oil-rich region.
"We've been warning the authorities about this for a long time," he said.
Abadi has scrambled to defuse the anger and authorities have pledged a multi-billion dollar emergency plan to revive infrastructure and services in southern Iraq.
But Iraqis remain deeply sceptical as the country remains in a state of political limbo. Al Sadr on Thursday called for politicians to present "radical and immediate" solutions at the emergency meeting of parliament or step down if they fail to do so.
Abadi, for his part, is trying to hold onto his post in the future government through forming an alliance with Sadr, a former militia chief who has called for Iraq to have greater political independence from both neighbouring Iran and the United States.
