This archive report was first published on 26 November 2019.
Violence in Iraq's grassroots movement demanding a total overhaul of the country's political class has claimed another life, with at least 350 people killed and 15,000 wounded since protests began on October 1 in Baghdad and the Shiite-majority south.
The latest victim fell in Baghdad, shot by a rubber bullet near Al-Ahrar bridge, which leads to government buildings on the west bank of the Tigris River.
Security forces have sealed off Al-Ahrar and used tear gas, rubber bullets, and live fire to keep crowds back, fearing protesters would cross the bridge to storm government offices.
Clashes between demonstrators and security forces have transformed the historic heart of Baghdad into a flashpoint, with daily skirmishes involving teenagers throwing rocks from behind makeshift barricades.
On Tuesday, 18 demonstrators were wounded near Al-Ahrar, according to a medical source.
Many young men have been camping out in the area for days or weeks, with one protester telling AFP, 'We won't leave unless it's in coffins.'
Another protester said, 'Either way, I've got no job, no money, so whether I stay here or go home, it's all the same.'
Protesters in the south have also been responsible for smoke, burning tyres along highways outside the city of Diwaniyah and blockading main bridges and a power station.
In Diwaniyah, massive crowds marched through the streets, tearing down posters of politicians and drumming on them with their shoes to insult them.
Protesters chanted, 'It's been two months, we're sick of your promises.'
Skirmishes with riot police have been rare in Diwaniyah, but in nearby Hillah, security forces fired tear gas grenades at protesters, wounding around 60, medics said.
Clashes between demonstrators and security forces have also been reported in the Shiite holy city of Karbala, with nighttime skirmishes becoming routine.
Arteries linking key cities and oil fields in Dhi Qar were shut, with clashes with police guarding the fields leaving 13 officers wounded.
The three oil fields together produce around 200,000 of Iraq's roughly 3.6 million barrels a day.
Despite the turmoil, Iraq's oil production and exports have not been significantly impacted, which fund virtually all of the country's state budget.
The 2020 budget is currently being discussed by Iraq's cabinet, with government sources saying it is expected to be one of the country's largest yet.
However, experts say that Iraq's model of a large public sector is unsustainable for a country of nearly 40 million people, set to grow by another 10 million in the next decade.
