Reporting by PMOI/MEK
Iraq, January 20, 2020—Following the killing of the Iranian regime’s Revolutionary Guards (IRGC) Quds Force chief Qassem Soleimani along with Iraqi militia leader Abu Mahdi al-Muhandis, Tehran has been desperately attempting to portray a very popular image of these two mass murderers. All the while, the Iraqi people are refusing to accept such propaganda and Sunday became yet another day of escalating protests in several cities.
On Saturday, January 18, Iraqi protesters in Najaf, southern Iraq, attacked the office of Kata’ib Hezbollah, a militia group with close ties to Tehran, and set the site on fire. On Sunday, Iraqis set fire to large Qassem Soleimani billboards and also burned the office of the “al-Wafa movement,” another militia group linked to the mullahs’ regime.
Reports on Sunday night from the cities of Baghdad, Nasiriyah, Basrah, and others showed escalating clashes between protesters and security forces. Various reports claimed Iran-backed militia groups, such as the Hashd al-Shaabi (Popular Mobilization Forces), began opening fire and using live ammunition against protesters.
Anger among Iraqi demonstrators is increasing over collaboration between Iraqi militias associated with Tehran and the mullahs’ Intelligence Ministry in assassinating political activists in Iraq.
As a deadline set by Iraqi demonstrators came to an end this weekend, protesters in southern provinces took to the streets in various cities and called for continued demonstrations against government corruption and Tehran’s meddling in their country.
Administrative offices were closed in Najaf
Demonstrators in Dhi Qar chanted slogans against Iraq’s caretaker prime minister Adel Abdul-Mahdi and his neglect to take measures aimed at finding the killers who are assassinating civil activists. In Kufa, near Najaf in southern Iraq, demonstrators attacked and torched an office associated to a parliamentary group linked to the mullahs’ regime.
Protests in Iraq
The cities of Najaf and Nasiriyah witnessed protesters taking control over various roads and bridges, and through such measures being able to block government forces from entering specific areas of their cities. Protesters in Najaf were also able to take control over the city’s airport entrance. In Karbala, locals began their demonstration on Sunday with demands of a complete government rehaul, corrupt political parties to step down and an end to Iran’s influence in their country.
Protesters in Baghdad were clashing with oppressive forces in the capital’s Tayran Square, closing all the streets leading to the square. Oppressive security forces used tear gas and sound bombs in their confrontations against the demonstrations, while protesters are demanding the prosecution of political figures associated with Tehran, including former prime minister Nouri al-Maliki, and all the criminals who have Iraqi blood on their hands.
College students and high schoolers in various provinces of Babylon, Diwaniya, and al-Mothana were seen taking part in the demonstrations.
The organizing committee of Iraqi demonstrations is emphasizing on the Iraqi people’s determination to stand their ground in the face of threats by Iran-backed militias and their attacks on their protest camps in various cities.
Despite the fact that Iranian regime Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei and the mullahs’ regime have attempted to maintain their corrupt puppets in power in Baghdad, the Iraqi people are refusing to succumb to their demands.
The death of the Qassem Soleimani has weakened Tehran and its status in Iraq. As a result, the Iraqi people are taking advantage of this momentum to further pursue their right demands of a government of and by people, and especially ridding their country of Tehran’s malign influence.
