. Military Space News .
IRAQ WARS
Iraqis apprehensive ahead of cleric's anti-US rally
By Ammar Karim and Ayman Henna
Baghdad (AFP) Jan 24, 2020

Iraq protester gunned down in second night of violence
Basra, Iraq (AFP) Jan 23, 2020 - An Iraqi demonstrator was shot dead in the southern city of Basra overnight, a security source and the human rights commission said Thursday, the latest in a string of protester deaths.

The anti-government demonstrations rocking the Iraqi capital and the Shiite-majority south since October had abated in recent weeks amid spiralling tensions between Iraq's key allies, the United States and Iran.

To recapture momentum and boost pressure on authorities, protesters this week began shutting down roads across the country -- but violence against them has escalated, too.

The young demonstrator was shot dead by unidentified assailants after he left the main protest camp in Basra, a security source said.

He had no papers on his person and police were waiting for someone to identify the body, the source told AFP.

It was the second straight night a protester was gunned down in Basra. Female activist and paramedic Janat Madhi, 49, was killed the same way late on Tuesday.

The deaths bring this week's toll to 12 demonstrators killed, according to the Iraqi Human Rights Commission, a state-funded monitor which reports on protest violence.

Four people were killed in Baghdad, one in Diyala, two in Karbala and five in Basra, including the latest two killings.

"Violence against demonstrators is clearly ongoing," commission member Ali Bayati told AFP.

"The unknown armed groups targeting protesters show that security forces are unable to protect citizens," he said.

Demonstrators have accused authorities of implementing a double standard, swiftly arresting anyone blocking roads with burning tyres while failing to apprehend those who have kidnapped and killed dozens of activists.

Hundreds of students gathered in Basra on Thursday morning to protest against the killings, chanting and holding up signs saying "Give us a country."

This week's violence brings to 470 the overall death toll since protests erupted in October, according to an AFP tally of reports from medical or security sources and the Human Rights Commission.

Supporters of volatile Iraqi cleric Moqtada Sadr prepared on Friday for a "million-strong" march in Baghdad to demand the ouster of US troops, putting the protest-hit capital on edge.

The march has rattled the separate, months-old protest movement that has rocked the capital and Shiite-majority south, where young Iraqis have demanded a government overhaul, early parliamentary elections and more accountability.

After defying violence that has left 470 people dead as well as a spree of kidnappings and intimidations, those protesters fear their cause could be eclipsed by Sadr's powerplay.

"Sadr doesn't represent us," one teenager said defiantly late Thursday on a blocked-off thoroughfare in Baghdad.

America's military presence in Iraq has become a hot-button issue in the country since a US drone strike killed Iranian general Qasem Soleimani and Iraqi commander Abu Mahdi al-Muhandis on January 3 outside Baghdad's international airport.

Two days later, parliament voted for all foreign troops -- including some 5,200 US forces -- to leave their country.

Sadr, long opposed to US troops being in Iraq, decided to take that momentum to the street and called for "a million-strong, peaceful, unified demonstration to condemn the American presence and its violations".

Several pro-Iran factions from the Hashed al-Shaabi military force, usually rivals of Sadr, have backed his call and pledged to take part on Friday.

By late Thursday afternoon, new checkpoints cropped up across Baghdad aimed at securing the protest area.

In the shrine city of Karbala, south of Baghdad, large buses were seen picking up Sadr supporters to bring them to the capital for the rally.

- 'Politicised' protests -

To head off the anti-US gathering and ramp up pressure on authorities to enact reforms, young anti-government demonstrators shut down streets in Baghdad and across the south this week with burning tyres and metal barricades.

Protester Mariam said Friday's rally would be "politicised by certain factions or sides".

"We're protesting in the people's name. We're free. We can't demonstrate in the name of a particular party or sect," she said.

When Sadr announced plans for the rally last week, many feared he would hold it near Tahrir Square -- the beating heart of the anti-government protests in Baghdad.

But his spokesman Saleh al-Obeidy said late Wednesday that they had chosen the neighbourhood of Jadiriyah, near Baghdad University, as the gathering place.

That, in turn, has sparked worry that angry crowds could attack the presidential palace or the high-security Green Zone, which houses the US embassy.

The move would not be without precedent for Sadr, who urged followers to storm the Green Zone in 2016 in a challenge to the government over undelivered reforms.

Sadr battled US forces with his Mehdi Army after the American-led invasion that toppled Saddam Hussein in 2003.

He later branded himself a reformist and backed the recent anti-government protests when they erupted in October.

At the same time he controls the largest bloc in parliament and his followers hold top ministerial positions.

The 46-year-old is a notoriously fickle politician, known for switching alliances quickly.

"Some sides representing the October revolutionaries think Iran is solely responsible for Iraq's ruin and others represented by the Hashed or its supporters say America is the source of ruin," Obeidy said Wednesday.

"We believe that both are behind this ruin, and Sadr is trying to balance between the two."

- Hedging bets -

It remained unclear even until early Friday how many people would turn out for the rally and where they would march.

Harith Hasan, an expert at the Carnegie Middle East Center, told AFP Sadr was trying to sustain his "multiple identities" by backing various protests.

"On the one hand, (he seeks to) position himself as the leader of a reform movement, as a populist, as anti-establishment," Hasan said.

"On the other hand, he also wants to sustain his image as the leader of the resistance to the 'American occupation'," partly to win favour with Iran, he added.

Tehran has insisted all American troops must leave the Middle East amid the skyrocketing tensions with Washington over recent weeks.

But Sadr may also have domestic motivations, Hasan said.

"This protest will show Sadr is still the one able to mobilise large groups of people in the streets -- but it's also possible he wants other groups to respond by giving him more space to choose the prime minister."

Premier Adel Abdel Mahdi resigned in December under pressure from protests and Iraq's Shiite religious authority, but he remains caretaker prime minister, as political parties have failed to name a successor.


Related Links
Iraq: The first technology war of the 21st century


Thanks for being here;
We need your help. The SpaceDaily news network continues to grow but revenues have never been harder to maintain.

With the rise of Ad Blockers, and Facebook - our traditional revenue sources via quality network advertising continues to decline. And unlike so many other news sites, we don't have a paywall - with those annoying usernames and passwords.

Our news coverage takes time and effort to publish 365 days a year.

If you find our news sites informative and useful then please consider becoming a regular supporter or for now make a one off contribution.
SpaceDaily Contributor
$5 Billed Once


credit card or paypal
SpaceDaily Monthly Supporter
$5 Billed Monthly


paypal only


IRAQ WARS
IS resurgence possible if US leaves Iraq: general
Washington (AFP) Jan 23, 2020
The Islamic State group is weakened but a resurgence is possible if the United States leaves Iraq, US Major General Alexus Grynkewich, the number two commander for the international anti-jihadist coalition in Iraq and Syria, said Wednesday. The group "certainly still remain a threat," he said. "They have the potential to resurge if we take pressure off of them for too long." The general said he did not see the threat of an immediate IS comeback. "But the more time we take pressure off of the ... read more

Comment using your Disqus, Facebook, Google or Twitter login.



Share this article via these popular social media networks
del.icio.usdel.icio.us DiggDigg RedditReddit GoogleGoogle

IRAQ WARS
Lockheed nabs $114M deal to deliver Patriot missiles to UAE

Syrian defences fire on 'hostile missiles' from Israel: state media

Moscow lifts veil on missile attack warning system

Germany in talks with Lockheed, MBDA for missile defense program

IRAQ WARS
New footage shows Iranian missiles hitting Ukraine plane

Raytheon awarded $9M to maintain HARM weapons for Morocco, Turkey, U.S.

Iran's 'catastrophic mistake': Speculation, pressure, then admission

'Surviving was a miracle': Iran's missile attack on Iraq base

IRAQ WARS
Quantum technologies are changing the face of unmanned aircraft communications

Trump details Soleimani's end in UAV attack

As Iran missiles battered Iraq base, US lost eyes in sky

Moths' flight data helps drones navigate complex environments

IRAQ WARS
Protecting wideband RF systems in congested electromagnetic environments

General Dynamics receives $730M for next-gen satcom system

Airbus' marks 50 years in Skynet secure satellite communications for UK

Lockheed Martin gets $3.3B contract for communications satellite work

IRAQ WARS
Northrup Grumman awarded $217.2M for BACN payload support

BAE nabs $400.9M contract to deliver armored multi-purpose vehicles to Army

Israel starts to install sensors along Lebanon border

Sig Sauer nabs $10M Army contract for sniper rifle ammo

IRAQ WARS
China now world's second biggest weapons producer: researchers

BAE swoops for Raytheon, United assets amid merger

China slams US defence act over trade restrictions

Switzerland drops case against aerospace firm tied to Saudis

IRAQ WARS
Divided EU leaders to hammer out budget at February summit

Russia invites NATO members to take part in war games

Philippines' Duterte threatens to end US military pact

Turkey, NATO still at odds over Russia arms deal: Stoltenberg

IRAQ WARS
Nanobubbles in nanodroplets

New production method for carbon nanotubes gets green light

A quantum breakthrough brings a technique from astronomy to the nano-scale

Creating a nanoscale on-off switch for heat









The content herein, unless otherwise known to be public domain, are Copyright 1995-2024 - Space Media Network. All websites are published in Australia and are solely subject to Australian law and governed by Fair Use principals for news reporting and research purposes. AFP, UPI and IANS news wire stories are copyright Agence France-Presse, United Press International and Indo-Asia News Service. ESA news reports are copyright European Space Agency. All NASA sourced material is public domain. Additional copyrights may apply in whole or part to other bona fide parties. All articles labeled "by Staff Writers" include reports supplied to Space Media Network by industry news wires, PR agencies, corporate press officers and the like. Such articles are individually curated and edited by Space Media Network staff on the basis of the report's information value to our industry and professional readership. Advertising does not imply endorsement, agreement or approval of any opinions, statements or information provided by Space Media Network on any Web page published or hosted by Space Media Network. General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) Statement Our advertisers use various cookies and the like to deliver the best ad banner available at one time. All network advertising suppliers have GDPR policies (Legitimate Interest) that conform with EU regulations for data collection. By using our websites you consent to cookie based advertising. If you do not agree with this then you must stop using the websites from May 25, 2018. Privacy Statement. Additional information can be found here at About Us.