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536 killed in 4-month anti-gov’t protests in Iraq
BAGHDAD, Feb 3, 2020 (BSS/Xinhua)-Iraq’s Independent High Commission for Human Rights (IHCHR) said on Monday that the death toll from four months of nationwide anti-government protests has reached 536, with 23,545 wounded.
A statement by the commission affiliated with the Iraqi parliament said the death of 519 protesters and 17 security members and the injury of 20,026 protesters and 3,519 security members were registered during the period between Oct. 1, 2019 and Jan. 30 this year.
Ali al-Baiyati, an IHCHR member, said the number of detainees during the same period was 2,713, but only 328 of them remain in detention, according to the statement.
Mass anti-government demonstrations have been continuing in the capital Baghdad and other cities in central and southern Iraq since October of 2019, demanding comprehensive reform, fight against corruption, better public services and more job opportunities.
BSS/XINHUA/AU/15:40 hrs