Editorial Note: The following news reports are summaries from original sources. They may also include corrections of Arabic names and political terminology. Comments are in parentheses. Share the link of this article with your facebook friends

 

Iraqi Protests Against Government Corruption Continues, US-Iraqi Campaigns Resumed Against ISIS in Northern Provinces

May 11, 2020

Iraqi army vehicle participating in an anti-ISIS campaign in Diyala, May 11, 2020 bagpost	US soldiers in Iraq, file, May 11, 2020

Iraqis renew their protests against government corruption, May 10, 2020	Anti-government rallies resume in Iraq seeking early polls, accountability, May 10, 2020

 

Anti-government rallies resume in Iraq seeking early polls, accountability

Bagdad Post, May 10, 2020

Anti-government rallies resumed in some Iraqi cities on Sunday, clashing with security forces and ending months of relative calm just days after Prime Minister Mustafa al Kazimi's government came to power.

The protests first erupted in Baghdad and southern cities in October, demanding an end to corruption and unemployment and an overhaul of the ruling class.

But internal splits, a rise in US-Iran tensions and a lockdown imposed by coronavirus effectively snuffed out the movement earlier this year, leaving a few desolate protesters camped out in squares across the country.

This week, after Iraq's parliament approved a new cabinet headed by Kazimi, activists promptly issued calls on social media for fresh protests, saying the new premier was part of the same reviled political class. 

By noon, dozens had gathered at the epicentre of the protest movement in Tahrir Square.

"The people want the fall of the regime!" they shouted, pelting rocks and Molotov cocktails at security forces blocking off the adjacent Al-Jumhuriyah bridge, which leads into the high-security Green Zone hosting government offices and foreign embassies. 

The protesters, mostly teenage boys, managed to clamber over a first barrier on the bridge as security forces responded with water cannons and tear gas. 
A medical source said  that 20 protesters had suffered breathing difficulties from the gas but no shots were fired.

In Nasiriyah, a protest hotspot further south, dozens of protesters shut off streets with burning tyres and threw rocks at security forces, who responded with tear gas. 

Their demands echoed the previous rallies: early elections under a new voting law and accountability for the more than 550 people killed in protest-related violence since October.
 
Protesters turned out overnight in the city of Kut, setting fire to the headquarters of the Iran-backed Badr Organisation and to the home of an MP affiliated with another Tehran-aligned faction, according to an AFP correspondent.

Hundreds more hit the streets on Sunday morning. 

The rallies came just hours after Kazimi appeared to extend a hand to the anti-government movement by promising to release arrested demonstrators and compensate the families of those killed while protesting. 

He also reinstated and promoted General Abdulwahab al-Saadi, a popular military figure whose abrupt dismissal by previous premier Adel Abdel Mahdi in September had been a main catalyst of the first protests.

And Kazimi called on parliament to adopt the new electoral law needed for early polls as demanded by the protesters.

Still, demonstrators remained sceptical.

"We will give him 10 days to prove himself, and if our demands aren't met, then we will escalate," said Mohammad, a student protester returning to Tahrir on Sunday.

Iraq’s new PM orders security forces to avoid violence in response to protests

Bagdad Post, May 10, 2020

 The New Prime Minister of Iraq, Mustafa al-Kadhimi on Sunday ordered the security forces to exercise restrain as protests in the capital and other provinces break out again.

Less than 72 hours after Kadhimi’s appointment and the formation of his cabinet, anti-government protests resumed in Iraq and large crowds of protesters were pushing closer to the fortified Green Zone earlier today.

According to media reports, Kadhimi has warned the security forces that using live ammunition against protesters “is not allowed under any circumstances”.

It comes amid reports of violence in some southern provinces. Previous reports claimed that protesters set fire to headquarters of Badr Brigade, Asaib Ahl al-Haq, and State of Law Coalition in Wasit province.

Iraq releases detained anti-government protesters, appoints new general

 Iraq’s judiciary ordered courts on Sunday to release anti-government protesters, carrying out one of the first decisions of the recently inaugurated prime minister just as dozens of demonstrators burned tires in renewed protests against the new leadership.

Prime Minister Mustafa al-Kadhimi also promoted a well-respected Iraqi general, who played a key role in the military campaign against ISIS, to lead counter-terrorism operations. Former leader Adel Abdul-Mahdi had previously mysteriously demoted the general, prompting outrage and sparking popular protests in northern Iraq and Baghdad in October.

The Supreme Judiciary Council said in a statement that it had ordered the release of protesters detained since those demonstrations erupted, in line with the new prime minister’s call.

The council released detainees based on Article 38 of the constitution which guarantees the right to protest, “provided that it is not accompanied by an act contrary to the law,” the statement said.

***

An Iraqi army-police campaign launched to chase remnants of ISIS cells in Abi Sayda area, in Diyala Province, following recent attacks on army and police checkpoints.

The Bagdad Post, May, 11, 2020 

انطلاق عملية عسكرية لتعقب خلايا تنظيم داعش الإرهابي في ديالى

الإثنين، 11 أيار 2020

أعلنت قيادة شرطة ديالى، اليوم الاثنين، عن انطلاق عملية عسكرية لتعقب خلايا تنظيم داعش الإجرامي في قرى ناحية أبي صيدا شمال شرق المحافظة. وقال مدير إعلام شرطة ديالى العميد نهاد المهداوي في تصريح صحفي، إن قوة أمنية مشتركة انطلقت في عملية عسكرية في قرى ناحية ابي صيدا لتعقب خلايا تنظيم داعش والمطلوبين للقضاء".

وأضاف المهداوي، أن العملية والتي حدد لها 3 محاور رئيسية تمتد على مدار 72 ساعة تعتمد على قائمة أهداف، مبينا أن العملية تهدف إلى تأمين الحزام الأمني لناحية أبي صيدا وقراها ومنع وجود أي نشاط إرهابي وتعزيز أمن نقاط المرابطة وتمشيط مساحات شاسعة من البساتين الزراعية. وكانت بعض قرى ناحية أبي صيدا شهدت مؤخرا هجمات إرهابية استهدفت نقاط مرابطة امنية للجيش والشرطة خاصة في محيط المخيسة وقرى أخرى.

https://www.thebaghdadpost.com/ar/Story/194902/انطلاق-عملية-عسكرية-لتعقب-خلايا-تنظيم-داعش-الإرهابي-في-ديالى

International Coalition (mainly US) forces resume operations against ISIS in Iraq, in coordination with the Iraqi forces, announces two air strikes in April.

التحالف الدولي يؤكد مواصلة عملياته ضد داعش في العراق

الإثنين، 11 أيار 2020 02:39 م
 
اكد التحالف الدولي ضد تنظيم داعش،  مواصلة عملياته ضد التنظيم في العراق، مشيراً  الى تنفيذ غارات جوية على مواقع لداعش الشهر الماضي. وقال نائب المتحدث باسم التحالف، ماثيو موريس، في تصريح صحفي  :" ان تنسيقنا مع مراكز العمليات في العراق مستمر، ونعمل مع القوات العراقية عن كثب لمواجهة داعش". واضاف :" ان ما لا يقل عن ست دول اعضاء في التحالف الدولي تساعد القوات العراقية في محاربة داعش بالعديد من الطرق ، ومنها الاسناد الجوي ". واوضح  :" ان التحالف نفذ غارتين جويتين على داعش في نيسان الماضي، احداهما في الثالث عشر  والاخرى في التاسع والعشرين منه ". وسبق ان علَّق التحالف الدولي ضد داعش انشطته في العراق  بسبب مخاطر تفشي كورونا، الى جانب اعادة تمركز قواته في العديد من القواعد العسكرية.

https://www.thebaghdadpost.com/ar/Story/194900/التحالف-الدولي-يؤكد-مواصلة-عملياته-ضد-داعش-في-العراق

***

Share the link of this article with your facebook friends